Be Present

“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born, and the day you find out why”. --Mark Twain

I had to travel around the world, pursue a dream that required me to move across the country, lose said dream job, and begin the process of restructuring my life to even BEGIN to understand the gravity of the second part.  When faced with the brunt of disappointment, or even the slightest discomfort, we have all had moments where we ran back to mediocrity because it felt familiar.  People crave what they are used to. 

What if I told you that discomfort is a gift?

Every tragedy, heartache, transition, and moment of uncertainty is an individual lesson that will help you pass a test you had yet to face.

I moved to Southeast Asia thinking I was going to learn how to prevent malaria.  I had no intention of learning the value of humility, or the power of compassion and the human spirit. Yet, that is exactly what I walked away with.  When my now significant other and I went on our first date, we had no idea we were sowing the seeds of a relationship that would traverse four countries in three years.

In the School of Life, every person, place, and thing acts as both lesson and student.  Every place you go, goes with you and is conversely affected by your presence.  The details of those effects are dependent on us. These experiences have potential uses that change with each situation we find ourselves in. The key, is practicing the mindfulness necessary to utilize the full potential of each moment.  This life is yours to live--to sell, squander, appreciate, maximize, love, or to ignore.  We all have the freedom to maximize or toss away our potential at any given time.  Take pride in that fact; therein lies the key to your emancipation. 

The chance to connect with purpose exists perpetually with each moment.  Our task is to decode the context accordingly, in order to find it. Time, culture, outward appearance and the like are irrelevant. Seek to understand the essence of each experience and be present in each moment.

That, is purpose.