Just take a step back...

Okay, I don't feel too bad now. Here I was thinking that I'd let this ass-slicing little site slip off my focus again, but it's been less than a month since my last post so it's all good. :)

I don't know if it's the fact that I'm getting older and seeing so much around me change, but lately, I've taken particular notice to the role that timing plays in everyday life. I'm not certain what the rhyme or reason of it all is... what endgame it's all leading to... and I'm not even going to breach the subject of whether or not there's some higher power overseeing it all because, in the end, it doesn't really matter.

The harsh reality is that everything in life is centered on timing. Call it fate. Call it destiny. Or even a random sequence of events. Everything depends on timing. The job you could've had. The relationship you could've started. The life you could've had. It's all a bit moot to even think about since there's little point in looking back on the missed opportunities of the past. Granted, it's never too late to make changes in life. If you're unhappy about something, stop bitching about it and get a move on.

However, some events are so dependent on all the pieces falling in just the right places for the puzzle to be complete that it becomes a bit like catching lightning in a bottle. As hard as you try and as much as you may want it, you'll never be able to capture that chance again. It's sailed past you, off on its course toward that little corner of your mind with the rest of your life's regrets.

This may sound disparaging, but there's a plus side as well. Here's an example from my own personal experience. During my adolescence, I wasn't particularly social, to the point that I now wish I had taken better advantage of my high school experience and made a little more effort to venture out of my shell. On the other hand, would I have performed well enough academically to get a scholarship for college? Would I be the moderately successful professional I am now if I'd never earned my degree... or would my professional life have remained frozen in place?

I guess my point is that, although it doesn't feel like it at the time, everything we do and every single moment in our lives is a relevant one. It's all leading someplace. Every experience we have affects who we are and how we react and relate to the world around us. It affects our future choices, and each decision we make, each person we encounter and each day we're lucky enough to walk this earth is a critical part in deciding where you'll be 5, 10 years from now.

It's all part of a larger picture, and while some of us (guilty!) get a little too caught up in the big picture, I personally find it a bit perplexing when some people are so devoid of self-awareness that they totally miss out on what's happening around them.

True, in my life, there's a good deal of decisions I would change, of opportunities I would go back and take advantage of. But it's all important in forming who I am today so in a way, I wouldn't change a thing. All I can do at this point is be mindful in the future and try to do the very best I can with the people who enter my life, hoping and praying that each decision I make will lead me to a better place. Because, when it comes down to it, it all matters.

Just take a step back... and look at your life as one big picture. You'll see what I mean.

Happy living, fellow writers...

-Rob