A Carpenters Tale

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife enjoying his extended family. 

He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by. The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.

When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front-door key to the carpenter. "This is your house," he said, "my gift to you."

What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized that we would have done it differently.  We should have gotten excited about our Life!

Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely with excitement. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived to the fullest, with graciously and dignity. The plaque on the wall says, "Life is a do-it-yourself project. Get excited about it!"

Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today.

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Getting Excited About Everything In Your Life

Getting excited about everything in life is a matter of choice. Does that seem strange to you? Let's consider that thought for a moment.......... Still seem strange? Probably it does. You are probably thinking to yourself, or out loud for that matter - "I get excited about certain things in my life, yes, but EVERYTHING? Hardly."

Let me explain what I mean. Excitement comes from a feeling inside your head that fills your whole body with energy ... right? If you don't feel excited right now, let's take a little trip. No, you won't need your car keys, stay with me on this. Let's take a mental journey into the happiest moments of your life.

For some of you, it may be when your first child was born. Or each child, we know you parents don't like to play favorites. Incredible feelings, almost overwhelming you, filled your heart with amazement that something so complex as a human being was created by someone like you and another. That this little child was yours to love and cherish for as long as you lived. You'd have some messy things to handle (often literally) along the way, but the sheer joy of that responsibility gave you warmth, comfort, and a wonderful feeling about the future.

An adventure was beginning. For others, it may have been when you got that first job. You may be looking back thinking, if I only knew then what I know now, I wouldn't have been that excited. But let's go back to that first moment when you found out someone trusted you enough to want to hire you and pay you for it too! You had that excitement then too. A little different, yes, but the common thing was that you had a certain spring in your step, an "I can't wait to tell the world" attitude, and your whole body almost trembled with anticipation for the future.

Are you at the same place in our little trip as I am? If not, close your eyes and think hard. Are those feelings not basically the same? Great. Glad you caught up with me. I've been waiting for you over here and I was beginning to wonder where you went. <grin>

Well as children, we seemed to get excited over simple things. It's only as adults that we lost that ability. Many of us also lost the ability to dream. Life has it's way of showing us some ugly things too. It's up to us to keep it in perspective and stay focused on life as a wonderful journey.

Two year olds wake up each morning, and have a certain attitude don't they? "It's another day!!! Yay!!! What are you still sleeping for? I'm awake, let's play!!!!" Those of you that are groaning right now know what I'm talking about.

How do adults wake up? Groggy..., your bones make all sorts of firework-type noises, not quite refreshed, you search for that first sip of coffee. Amazing how you know that it's the first sip, not the whole cup, that starts things going right. Ok, you're probably thinking, where am I going with this? How does this fit in to energizing me?

Many of you read this e-zine in the hopes that you'll learn something new, or that it's our job now, as The Energizer Bunny, to energize you. It's kinda like going into a comedy club and looking at the comic and saying "go ahead, do your job, make me laugh, I dare ya!"

Well I'm hear to take what you already know and have forgotten, and shove it right back into your face! You're alive!! It's another day! What are you still sleeping for? I'm up, play with me!

What many of us forget is HOW to become excited. HOW to get back that energy we had as children, how to look at each day as the gift it is in spite of what our lives are like now, or for that matter, BECAUSE of what are lives are like now.

Yesterday is a cancelled check. Tomorrow is the unknown, the future. (technology isn't where it oughta be, or you'd be hearing the music to 2001 a Space Odyssey right now). But today is truly a gift.

It's up to us each morning to use that gift to enrich ourselves. It's where we stand now, it's up to all of us to look ahead from where we are and say out loud "I can see where I'm heading, and I'm on my way there!" (If you just got up, don't say that out loud, you might be on your way to the bathroom) Anyway, I think you get my point.

Ok, now let's look at our state of health: A new diet for some, but a focus on improvement just the same. It's the same adventure.

When your child was born, you probably imagined yourself at the birth of THEIR child, or their graduation, didn't you? When you got that job as a file clerk, you probably imagined yourself as a manager, didn't you?

Well now it's time to imagine that new body you want. Uh, no, not that hunk next door or that cute brunette at the coffee shop. I'm talking about YOUR new body, the one you'll be in when you've gotten to your next step in this journey toward good health and vitality. That body where you'll be running along the beach, all glistening in the sun, those muscles toned and taught (stop thinking about that hunk, stay with me on this will ya?) That NEW YOU that you think about when you take that first step towards improving yourself.

Exciting, isn't it? To think that something as complex as a healthy, strong, mentally enlightened human being was created by someone like you! Go on, take a bow, congratulate yourself on taking that first step. You're on the right road, keep going! I've gotta make a left and head back home, but I'll see ya next time!

........Victor McGhee

Thank You for Whatever you can do.