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Today's
Meditation:
I can't
begin to count how many times I haven't taken action when
I really should have. I've been successful in most
of what I've done in life, but I know that my potential
for success has always been much greater than my actual
success rate. Fear has held me back, as has
hesitancy, the unwillingness to decide, the biases that
I've had and the aversion to risk and failure. But
when it comes to making our lives better, it's pretty
clear that the one thing necessary is taking action, even
if that action is choosing to be patient.
How
many of us are going to reach the end of our lives and
think about many different things with the thought,
"If only I had done this or that"? How
many of us shrink from taking action because we feel that
it's too dangerous to do so, that we're risking too much
if we step up and act? As much as I hate to admit
it, I'm going to have quite a few of those times to look
back on, even though I know full well that action is a
necessary part of a successful life.
One
thing that I'm glad I've learned about action is the
importance of the little actions in life, the small things
that we do with and for others. Sometimes these are
the most important things we can do-- saying hello to
someone, bringing dinner over to someone's house, cleaning
the garage. I'm also glad that I've learned the
importance of repeated actions on a small scale.
Some things need to be done and redone every day, and if
they aren't they build up into something
insurmountable. This truth shows us the importance
of chores for young people, for example-- they learn that
certain things simply need to be done, over and over
again, like laundry and dishes. And doing those
things calls for action.
We do
face the possibility of becoming too addicted to action,
of being that "human doing" instead of a
"human being." We must balance action with
rest and inaction, and we must develop the ability to
discern between the times when action is called for and
the times when action wouldn't be in anyone's best
interest. Some situations call for inaction, and we
must recognize that. Our lives are ours to live,
though, and when we want a certain something, very often
taking action is the most important step that we can
take. Very little happens without it.
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