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Today's
quotation:
As long as anyone believes
that their ideal and purpose
is outside them, that it is
above the clouds, in the past
or in the future, they will go
outside themselves and
seek fulfillment where it cannot be
found. They will
look for solutions and answers at every
point except
where they can be found--in themselves.
Erich Fromm
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Today's
Meditation:
It
really is an exercise in futility to try to find
fulfillment or happiness or purpose outside of
ourselves. Writer after writer, person after person,
teacher after teacher have given us this truth, yet we
still look for validation of ourselves outside of
ourselves, ignoring the advice of those whose experience
has taught them one of the most important lessons
available to human beings. My personal fulfillment
cannot come from my job performance or promotion or my
material possessions or my relationships. My
personal fulfillment can come only through a strong sense
of self, a strong respect for myself, and a recognition of
my amazing personal potential--and true efforts to reach
that potential.
Until
we truly believe this, though, we'll continue to look for
fulfillment in things and people outside of ourselves, and
in times apart from our present. And there are
people out there who want to keep you in this
trap--especially marketers and advertisers who would like
to convince you that you'll find fulfillment if you buy
their products or purchase their services. And
that's tempting for us to believe--because it's a much
easier approach to life and living. It doesn't take
as much effort to go out and buy something or to do
something that someone else tells us to do.
But
our fulfillment is up to us, and us only. Only we
can bring ourselves to a point at which we're at peace
with who we are and what we're doing. Only we can
find a space in which the things that happen around us
don't bring us down or put us in a bad mood or frustrate
us to no end.
You've
already been given all the gifts and abilities you need to
live a fulfilling and beautiful life. But are you
looking for the treasure on some island somewhere far
away, or are you mining the treasure in your heart and
spirit?
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