If you're under the age forty you may not have reached this fundamental awakening point in life yet but once you cross over something changes the way you see things. Yes, it appears that there is an invisible veil that seems to separate young ambition from matured realization.
When I was young I saw things through the eyes of youth. Things seem to be more hopeful and idealistic. However as I have matured I see the reality that was virtually obscured by my youthful exuberance. This is not usual; it is the “normal” path of youth.
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could see an image of where you are headed before you actually had to make a critical decision about which fork in the road you should take? Oddly, though, in life we don’t have the option of living in suspended animation. Each tick of life counts like that of an old grandfather’s clock, even when we’d prefer otherwise.
Acquiring wisdom is not a magical process. It is the one thing that is actually real about reality. Your life is happening. Each notch is like mounting each individual brick of a huge brick wall. The totality of your life is unfolding moment by moment, however, most of us are not fully aware of this process with vivid awareness while it is happening.
When you’re young you don’t usually realize that which you don’t know. No one can or could effectively convince you of your ignorance at that stage. This is fact. If you’re currently in this stage of life you may have issues with my statement. Don’t worry; it makes you “normal,” for most of us were similarly idealistic.
Alternatively there are rare individuals that dance to a different tune. They know very early in life who they are and have a good idea of where they are headed. They appear to have inbred wisdom beyond their years. Such individuals end up carving their own path in spite of the circumstances.
At the proverbial fork in the road of life they pick the one that propels them toward their perceived goals. Such individuals make up less than one tenth of one percent of the population. Some call them our natural born leaders.
Look back at some of our recent leaders. Look at our past presidents, governors, senators, or other leaders. Most didn’t just wake up one morning late in life and decide to get their act together. Perhaps George W may have been an exception to this according to his accounts. It was at his crossroads when he decided to turn his life around. We are now aware of his story from that point of change. Most of us have such a period in life, but only a few make it to such a high position.
Regardless of your personal opinion of George W the facts prove that this man turned his life around and carved a much different path than where he had been headed. He was able to see himself in a mirror and did not like the direction in which he was headed. This is what inspired him to carve a different path.
Most people come to such a point in life but not all make a clear choice to turn their lives around. Some just continue becoming old fools. Since George W became one of our past presidents he definitely didn’t fall into that category, putting political differences aside.
Although this essay deals specifically with adults making critical choices to carve a specific pathway, each of us tend to operate on our own unique time clocks. My critical point was specific to my life along with all the circumstances and situations therein. Your critical moment happens just at the perfect moment of life when it becomes necessary. This is similar to how each individual fruit on a tree ripens when it is ready, but not all ripen at the exact same moment in time.
Ironically life really doesn’t have to take as much time as we assume but since most aren’t aggressively and affirmatively moving things forward by intentionally carving out the path they wish to take, they’re left with waiting on the forces of nature to bring them forth. I say you may decide otherwise. This is what free will allows us. We all have it but only a few choose to use it.
Carve your own path in life…don’t just wait on it to carve one for you.
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