Surprise...You're probably jaded!

Why is it that just when you think you've seen it all, you learn actually, no you've only seen a part of something much grander. At a certain point in life, there aren't many things that might surprise a person. After all the years of defending our guard, perhaps becoming just a touch jaded, and somewhat emotionally desensitized we stick to our views, our habits, and our routines. The world is the way the world is going to be now and forever damn it!

But out of the blue something happens, something that teaches us the most inspiring moments in life often occur when we don't see them coming or want for them so desperately. A stranger holds the door, a loved one leaves you a kind note, your child takes her first step, or your teenager takes out the trash before you wake up.... and suddenly, whaa blamm! There goes our stodgy attitude, right out the window. These moments can't be planned. They simply happen without method or precursor. Next, you find yourself asking, "what planet is this?" Actually it's been Earth all along and you're not in any crazy orbit, except maybe your own.

Perhaps, it's the attitudes we adopt through stress, depression, or being closed-minded that break apart when things in the world pan out differently than we expect. Suddenly our guard is lowered, we shake away just a touch of that narrow thinking, and emotionally, we're feeling all fuzzy and warm. We realize, hmm things aren't so bad; life is sort of nice; actually, I am happy.

Future, Faith and Grenade Launchers

Some people believe the future is a place where we arrive, or, circumstances that one day will be. When we ponder the future, we envision the gamut of possibilities we want in life: family, marriage, health, career, a vintage hatch-back Maserati with chrome plated wheels, satellite parking, Siberian leopard interior, and a street legal grenade launcher for crazy SOBs during rush hour? All in all, this is natural and a rational way to consider what the "future" might mean. But can one argue that the future is also made up of moments, efforts, and beliefs of now here in the present? That somehow the two are intertwined; and that right now we are living, partly, in our own individual futures? 

Present and future, now and next, today and tomorrow; all are ideas that live side-by-side but never actually touch, unfortunately for us. So what is the invisible connection between where we stand and where we'd like to go, what's the magic pill swallowed to unlock the mystery of present and future? I came across an image this morning and thought, hmm, maybe this is part of the answer:

Happy New Year: 2013

We have arrived! Time to close the door on events of the passing year and open another, inviting new hope and promises for the year ahead. It is the time of year when we resolve to make better choices, cast away habit, and create new goals. It is the time of year for a fresh start and another chance.

But what is so special about this time of year?  It is a routine we know and know well. So, what guiding force rouses the spirit, offers hope, and suggests that what we want, what we believe...we can have. What proof conveys a promising tomorrow?

It is our individual potential, the most resonate trumpet in our mind and the beautiful creature untamed, alive, and abiding in our heart. 

At each new year we look ahead aroused by potential; it suggests just how much better, stronger, happier, or healthier we can be. Potential is without limit and reminds us exactly where we have tread and wonderfully reveals how much farther we can go.