Enough

Recently I took a moment to sit and reflect a bit. I was plagued by four different questions. If my life ended today, did I love, give, believe, and dream enough for my life to have meant something to others. The answer kept coming back inconclusive. Throughout my life I have had one goal and I feel that I have failed miserably at it: to make a difference. Upon breaking down each aspect I realized that I can still make this difference.


Did I love enough?
William Blake wrote, "Love seeketh not itself to please, Nor for itself hath any care, But for another gives its ease, And builds a Heaven in Hell's despair." It is easy to say, "I love you," and anyone can say it, but it's another thing to show it. How can one show love? We show love with a simple touch or even a kiss. We show love by not putting ourselves before all others. "Immature love says: ' I love you, because I need you.' 'Mature love says: 'I need you because I love you,'" said by Erich Fromm.  We show love in the simplest of deeds. My wish is when I am gone someone can say to themselves, "She truly loved me."

Did I give enough?
In the words of Charles Dickens, "No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another." What does it mean to give? Giving is not necessarily giving of money and possessions, but of time and love. To give time is when you feel like you really don't have the time to spare but are willing to make it for another in need. Love is an emotion that is easily taken, but rarely given. When my time comes I hope that someone can say, "She gave even when she didn't have it to give."

Did I believe enough?
"A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral," believed by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. What is it to believe? We can believe in the supernatural, in others, in ourselves, and the chance of tomorrows. Many would say the supernatural is purely fiction, but what if it's not? What is the harm in believing in the things that go bump in the night? To believe in others tend to be a complicated issue. It seems that it is human nature to let others down to where we lack the faith to believe anyone else. We limit ourselves by using the past wrongs to hinder our faith in the people of the present. Sometimes it seems that we believe in ourselves the least of all. This is where our belief system should be the strongest. How do you believe in yourself? Simply by believing that you can accomplish anything that you try to do. The belief of tomorrows is what should inspire our todays. It should allow us to say, "I may be here today, but tomorrow I will be here at something bigger and better. At the end of my time I would like for someone to say, "Even when her faith in all things was shaky she still believed all things were possible."

Did I dream enough?
"Hope is a waking dream," philosophized by Aristotle. What are dreams and can we only do them while we are asleep? Dreams make life more worth living. Dreams inspire us to do more and to be more. Dreams can be as simple as we desire or as complex as our imagination can reach. If you're not happy with your current situation, you can always dream of better tomorrows. When my time has ended I want someone to be able to say, "When life was dark and uncertain she always dreamed of bigger and better things."

Many of the things I have wrote about today are things I will challenge myself to do more of. Can you say the same thing?