Can we every really “get it right” in our lives?

by MARK PAVILONS

After all these years, I still don't know if I've gotten it right.

I shed tears instead of burdens. Behind my smiles and smirks are other things, dark things, nagging things.

Last week I received some positive news about my health, but surprisingly, I didn't know what to do with that information. Should I celebrate? Should I be relieved? I almost felt lost, without such a burden hanging over me. Now what do I do?

Oh, what a wonderous and meddling thing the human mind is – ever minding its own business!

There are always “things” in our lives – tedious things, serious things, annoying things and troublesome things.

“Things may happen and often do to people as brainy and footsy as you,” according to Dr. Seuss.

Brainy I get, but footsy? Never been light on my feet. But he suggested that when things start to happen “don't worry, don't stew. Just go right along, you'll start happening too!”

Perhaps.

Many things have happened in my life in all those decades. Heck, I witnessed the arrival of the fax machine and microwave!

Some believe “third time's the charm,” but I'm likely working on my 10th or 12th.

If you ask my family, I'm still a “work in progress.” But am I progressing? Ah, there's the rub, as Shakespeare put it.

We are all moving, shifting, changing, adapting, wiggling and cringing. We are reactive and some have figured out how to be proactive and get ahead of the game. We all want to be better, healthier, happier and more peaceful.

Sure, there are countless ways to achieve these things, according to the Internet and infomercials. We could lose weight, give up carbs and sugar, down handfuls of supplements and even have our auras re-energized and chakras realigned.

After my recent illness and surgery, I am reluctant to see my Reiki practitioner to see just how out of whack I am.

Maybe the profound sadness she sensed has gone, or dissipated. Maybe the guilt of past mistakes no longer haunt me. And maybe, just maybe, the universe wants to embrace and guide me to another level.

Helen Keller expressed that the best things in life can't be seen or touched, they have to be felt in the heart.

We sometimes ask God to grant us the serenity to accept things we can't change, and the courage to change those we can. But the message gets garbled, and we clearly don't get the full meaning.

It's like flipping through the pages of a never-ending book, not finding the page, paragraph or sentence you've been desperately searching for.

But Napoleon Hill once said if you can't do great things, “do small things in a great way.”

Ya, that's it. That's my specialty. I do tons of little things and they're all amazing! But I wonder just how great it is to clean the hair out of the drain or stack dishes in the dishwasher. At least I can do things monkeys can't. Strike that, I'm sure they could both of those aforementioned chores.

But Confucius stressed that good things are difficult to achieve.

I'm so confused. I bet he never had to unload a dishwasher or figure out what to make for dinner every night.

They say struggles make you strong, tough and resilient. We all have them, whether self-made or forced upon us.

Do I feel stronger? Not really.

There are a times when I'm just waiting around, anticipating the next challenge, chore, puzzle or breakdown. I get a chuckle that I paid someone $120 to blow through a rubber hose to stop the leak in my furnace. I bet he's laughing, too.

I do realize that the world and everything in it is quite marvellous. Everything – rom the steadfast loyalty of ants and beauty of flowers, to the magic of homemade cookies – is quite miraculous.

There are times when I feel humans are interlopers, not so passive observers of what was created for us. I think we often miss the point, the big picture.

We go out of our way to make our lives easier, with heated coffee mugs and smart phone apps that remind us when to take our pills. We buy fair trade products and recycled thingamajigs to feel like we're more connected to the planet.

Wanna feel more connected? Walk around barefoot and feel the icky stuff beneath your feet.

Play with the wind and really listen, I mean really listen, to the world around you.

I think our bodies are one of our downfalls. We're trapped inside this shell of ours and we can't truly connect with others, or nature. What we need is a way out, a portal of sorts, to leave our bodies and float around aimlessly with the seeds that blow, the scents that meander through the neighbourhoods, and witness the formation of droplets that turn into morning dew.

We need to truly walk a mile in another's shoes, and get a feel for their journeys, their struggles. And then toss the shoes, so we can sink our toes into the sand or mud.

We need to get dirty – he down on the floor with the dog kind of dirty. Let them lick our faces and steal our food if that's what they want.

We make things too complicated, too difficult. Simplicity is not about minimalism, it's about cutting through the chaff, shucking the corn, opening the shell, and seeing what's inside.

Let people surprise you. Even better, surprise yourself and your better half!