Fulfillment
Many people..."consider themselves and their lives as a series of sensations to be experienced rather than as a work to be accomplished." - John Paul II
Therein lies one of the principles that guides my long term outlook on life. Every once in awhile, I take a break from my general state of happiness to reflect upon this, and I get the feeling that I haven't accomplished a whole hell of a lot towards achieving this goal since I graduated college over 3 years ago. I think that when you get right down to this, every down day I have is somehow related to me feeling a general lack of fulfillment.
Sure, I enjoy myself, sure I manage to find things to do, and I have some of the greatest friends you could ask for. But at the end of the day, I have to ask, "what am I doing with my life?" Every day for the past 3 years, I've gone to work, and I have a really good job for a young chap like me living in Maine with my degree. And fairly often, I wonder what the purpose of what I do is, in the grand scheme of things. My job allows me to earn a decent living, do the things I enjoy, but that's about it. I don't feel like I'm really contributing anything of importance to the world.
Its entirely possible - probable even - that I'm not called to touch the world via the office work I do, via my career. But that raises other issues for me, mainly, "if I won't accomplish my life's work through my job, then where?" This question even compelled me to consider giving up my job to give a life of service to God, but over a period of several excruciating years, I discerned that this was not the plan for me. I felt called to be a family man and carry out my life's work there, in raising a family and being involved in things that might make a difference.
Perhaps I'm having my first adulthood "crisis." I'm far too young for a mid-life crisis (unless I follow in the footsteps of both of my grandfathers and die at 49 or 51). But more and more, this issue troubles me. I think that I just realize that time is going by and I have yet to really start what is destined to become my life. I still feel like a mere child in the grand scheme of things, where more and more I think I'd rather find my destiny and start fulfilling it.
Impatience however can also be a trap, so I have to be careful. Perhaps its just not time yet, and this is just my impatience speaking. Impatience can lead to people "settling" for the first thing that comes along out of fear of never finding anything else. Impatience can lead to bad decisions, not those that are carefully discerned. Impatience can lead to you making decisions that can impair your ability to ever find true fulfillment.
So what do I have to say to that? God, give me patience, and I want it RIGHT NOW!
Therein lies one of the principles that guides my long term outlook on life. Every once in awhile, I take a break from my general state of happiness to reflect upon this, and I get the feeling that I haven't accomplished a whole hell of a lot towards achieving this goal since I graduated college over 3 years ago. I think that when you get right down to this, every down day I have is somehow related to me feeling a general lack of fulfillment.
Sure, I enjoy myself, sure I manage to find things to do, and I have some of the greatest friends you could ask for. But at the end of the day, I have to ask, "what am I doing with my life?" Every day for the past 3 years, I've gone to work, and I have a really good job for a young chap like me living in Maine with my degree. And fairly often, I wonder what the purpose of what I do is, in the grand scheme of things. My job allows me to earn a decent living, do the things I enjoy, but that's about it. I don't feel like I'm really contributing anything of importance to the world.
Its entirely possible - probable even - that I'm not called to touch the world via the office work I do, via my career. But that raises other issues for me, mainly, "if I won't accomplish my life's work through my job, then where?" This question even compelled me to consider giving up my job to give a life of service to God, but over a period of several excruciating years, I discerned that this was not the plan for me. I felt called to be a family man and carry out my life's work there, in raising a family and being involved in things that might make a difference.
Perhaps I'm having my first adulthood "crisis." I'm far too young for a mid-life crisis (unless I follow in the footsteps of both of my grandfathers and die at 49 or 51). But more and more, this issue troubles me. I think that I just realize that time is going by and I have yet to really start what is destined to become my life. I still feel like a mere child in the grand scheme of things, where more and more I think I'd rather find my destiny and start fulfilling it.
Impatience however can also be a trap, so I have to be careful. Perhaps its just not time yet, and this is just my impatience speaking. Impatience can lead to people "settling" for the first thing that comes along out of fear of never finding anything else. Impatience can lead to bad decisions, not those that are carefully discerned. Impatience can lead to you making decisions that can impair your ability to ever find true fulfillment.
So what do I have to say to that? God, give me patience, and I want it RIGHT NOW!