December 11th, 2008 Posted in Uncategorized
It is that time of year, and I find myself writing my yearly performance review at work, and establishing goals for the upcoming year. It seemed a prime time to define some personal goals, and make sure I’m on track.
So here they are, in order of importance …..
Be an exceptional father. I want to be there when he needs me. I want to have his life in mind, I want his troubles and worries to be my own. I want to share in his childhood and be a friend in times of need. I want to provide for his upbringing – he should have the opportunity to learn all that he wants to learn.
Build and create beautiful things. Build things that are intricate, and beautiful and complex. I want to loose myself to these creations. I want to be inspired by my own designs and feel the energy of that creation. To be possessed by our ability to create from nothing, something of value, something of merit, something of grace and symmetry. I want to be filled with a love of all that is real and knowable in this world – and in that moment, glimpse what is not.
Make the world a better place. I want to help people. I want to help many types of people. I want my wife to be better person for having to cope with me. I want my coworkers and employees to be better for having to understand me. I want people I’ve never met to benefit from my contributions of time and money. I want my sum contributions to add up to more than the deductions.
Grow. I do not want to stagnate, to fixate on a set frame of reference. Rather, I want to have the strength to adjust, and appreciate a frame of reference, understand it, love it, and only then move on. That is to say, I want to grow. Slowly. I want to grow carefully and thoughtfully and with the tarnish of wisdom about me.
Find joy. I want to seek out joy. Extract it from the crevices of daily life, and magnify it, bring it out, share it with the world. But I do not seek out lonely places or dark corners to point out small joys. I step back from those places, and point out the abundant and endless joys – the fantastic complexity and order of the universe, the pleasure of a friend, the wonder of a child, those breathtaking moments of peace that we all know, and so rarely feel, but that inundate our desktops and walls. There is joy. There is peace. I should know it, and conduct it.
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