September 2012: Perception
Life is good, but bad things happen. Bad things happen, but life is good. Been turning that phrase around in my head for a few days now.
Usually, I think in terms of ‘Bad things happen, but life goes on.’ Life is hard. Life is painful. A defeatist attitude, really, when I think about it. However, the phrase ‘bad things happen, but life is good’ smells strongly of that oft spoken cliché: Count your blessings. Difficult to do when faced with tough decisions, loss, or any number of life altering scenarios. Counting one’s blessings, while it does have its place in life—namely an attitude of gratitude, can have an invalidating or minimizing effect upon suffering. Life is hard. Life is painful. But life is also good.
However, my thoughts have strayed from the basic ‘count my blessings’ approach albeit that may have been the starting line. By looking at the broader picture, I have come to realize that Life, in itself, is good—regardless of circumstances—or even blessings. Life—the lungs breathing in and out, the heart pumping blood through arteries and veins—is nothing short of miraculous. Without those two actions, there is no Life. Without conception, gestation, and a successful birth, there is no Life. All processes beyond our control—notwithstanding our efforts to influence them.
While some days it may not feel like it, the ability to interact, make decisions, leave our mark on this world, renders life good. It is rather amazing that we get to breathe in and out as well as participate in Life as much as we choose to do so—and how we choose to do so.
Which brings me back to me back to my original statement. Life is good, but bad things happen. Life is hard. Life is painful. But Life, itself, is good.
So how will you celebrate the goodness of Life today, in amongst the pain and sufferings of daily life?