Yes it is time to have a Happy Easter

This is clearly a new season and the truth is always better than fumbling around or being indecisive about how you want your future to unwind.  This may very well be the time when changes happen and choices are made whether we like it or not.  This is the time to saying yes to things which you have considered for long enough and to begin to action the important goals you have set so that you can open the next chapter of your life because the previous one is lingering far too long.  This is a perfect weekend symbolised by the death of our saviour and the ressurection, bringing new life, to embark on a new adventure, whatever it may be.  There may be sadness in this time because the story of Easter is not without immense pain and suffering and includes hurt and beytrayal and rejection, but what is important in the story is the fact that what emerged from the resurrection was new life, opportunity and new beginnings.  Perhaps like me the time of moping, fretting and inaction is over and you can look forward to a new journey in which you can begin to say yes to the right things and a definitive no to those things and people that have little purpose in gettiing you to your destination.  After all they have their own lives to consider.  Sometimes the future changes quickly and completely and we are left with only the choice of what to do next.  We can chose to be afriad of it, to stand there trembling and not moving, assuming the worst that can happen, or we can step forward into the unknown and assume it will be brilliant.  In the end you need to try at least and to say yes where otherwise you may have said no.  It will take courage but it will be better to say yes to the truth, to say yes to the opportunities you have, to say yes to what makes you happiest and to say yes to the the things that terrify you, but which you have peace, will keep you moving forward.  You may have success or so it would seem but this may only be judged in financial terms, but if you are doing what you are passionate about, this provides far more motivation to get up and pursue your goals than the rands and cents.  This is also not the time to follow the crowd, but rather to walk alone if need be, so that you find yourself in places you have never been before, so that you can conquer adventures you have not thought are possible.  Maybe it is better to stop trying to change others and their minds and rather to focus on your own game so that you can in fact get in the game and importantly you have to realise that sometimes you cant win and you were never going to win, so the best thing to do, is stop fighting that situation, which you cant change and rather pour your energy into that which can produce happines.  Why use your energy to put up a wall around yourself with all the stones that have been thrown at you and when in fact the same energy can be used to build a road or path to a greater future of success.  You will never force anything that is not truly meant to be, so start being smart and take the decisions in your life which you have the passion and faith to pursue and let not your insecurities and fears result in you being alone.  You dont need to be alone or unhappy, you can make diffrent choices and watch how when you say yes to the right things, the task at hand gets ever easier.  Dont wait to start taking backpossession  of your life and use the sybolism of this weekend to set the record straight. 

The Truth is still Free

It is said that the truth will set you free, but before it does it could p$*# you off.  We are surrounded by countless examples of what represents the truth and what is good and bad and we have to choose what to believe and what not.  So many choices but which is right. It is sometimes very difficult to deal with the truth and we are in control of only a few things in this world.  I was reading about Job, a man truly tested by God who was put through the fire in so many ways.  His troubles make my simple ramblings seem pathetic, but God was dealing with him systematically and revealing truths to him in his pain and testing.  Once God had dealt with him and explained things to him which were deep and meaningful, he restored him double fold in all that was taken from him. By way of example we can control very little in the economy, unless we are Pravin Gordhan, we have little influence over the leadesthip in the country, as it would seem for example that we cannot get rid of the insanely useless leadership currently dictating the destiny of the country.  Our sphere of influence may not extend to such areas.  We can't control how others will react to us or what they may do.  But we certainly can control a few things in order to put us on the path to a more fulfilled life.  We have the ability to choose our own happiness and effect a positive change in our life by taking clear and unequivocal decisions to do something.  Life will continue to teach us lessons, but having a passion for what we are commited to, in life, relationships and work will help us to cross from a place of being affected by the world and its challenges to where we have earned significance in our lives through decisions which are borne in the very difficult times we may find ourselves in.  Job must have had so many questions like we all do, as to why certain things happen in our lives,  but the truth that God revealed to him was probably not what he wanted to hear.  But it was the truth that God was in control throughout and that when the correct timing is given we have a duty to react and go forward irrespective of our selfish needs.  Once people and circumstances become too involved in the determination of our own truth then truth may very well hide amongst the opinions and assumptions.  But it does lie quietly only for a time or season on its own, waiting for the right time to be revealed.  And i believe that it always finds its way to surface whether we like its timing or not.  The quicker it is cleared, the faster and more positively we can react to it.  Otherwise we end up seeking the "wise counsel of the Guptas" or allow a country (or a life) to drift towards "junk status" as determined by people, policies and circumstances beyond our control.  I think that it is still better to try to seek and proclaim the truth even if my ememies and detractors think that they can use it against me and no mattter how it hurts i would rather face it than become embroiled in an elaborate  puzzle of inconsistent pieces cut into, and going in different directions.  This is a time for the truth to be pursued despite our faults, to accept ourselves including any failures and to give this time a shot and dare to let it set us free.

An exercise in Happiness

Happiness seems to be defined as a positive state of mind.  It does not seem to lie necessarily in the work we do, or in relationships or in people per se; it requires an attitude adjustment towards acquiring a state of mind which combines certain elements and leaves you feeling fulfilled and a more complete person. We cannot always be or feel happy because our lives are affected by circumstances, like hurt, pain and regrets.  However, decisions made are more likely to produce happiness than indecisiveness. And yet it is very easy to get into the mentality that we cannot make decisions because they will cause more hurt or destroy our peace.  But happiness lies carefully hidden, but still attainable, in the place where peace exists and the things that steal our peace, are the same things that steal our happiness. We tend to blame things in our lives for our unhappiness or believe that we are responsible for making others happy as if it is our duty or responsibility but in reality happiness is often a subjective and personal experience.  Even so we need to take certain things with us in the pursuit of happiness, like a positive attitude, the right team, the correct belief system, a single minded purpose and an idea of what lies in store. We need clear goals and a belief that we can achieve a happy state here and now and not just some obscure concept which is only to be found in a dazed, confused and uncertain state of mind somewhere in an uncertain future.  There is also little point in striving to get to a place of happiness, only to want something else to make us happy when we get there.  We need to be satisfied with the choices we make and the results we achieve and be extremely grateful for the journey that got us to that place in the first place.  Some of us need to drop our standards a little or be less critical and not to overanalyze every circumstance until it all but frustrates us, but rather enjoy the ride once in a while, no matter what the worldly outcome may be.  Lets face it "Grumpy" has never been happy.  We are of little value if we are frustrated, bitter or downright miserable.  Our decisions may not always be popular, understandable or what would seem to be the main stream thing to do, but these are defining times and we better believe that what we do now is going to have an impact in a few years from now. If we really want this thing called happiness then we owe it to ourselves to make an effort to achieve it.  This is no time to sit on our butts and think that it will come to us and we better accept that the way we think things are going to turn out will probably look very different when eventually the day comes that we truly feel happy.  So grab hold of the one or two or three things that make you happy and be relentless to pursue their conclusion.

A Season to Journey

Lets face it we live in defining times and motivation and comfort are hardly visible on a daily basis at the moment so we pretty much have to gain perspective in every area of our lives. We are surrounded by threats to our existence, many of which are no longer directly within our control.  We would want to be positive and be ready for challenges in the norms of business, our childrens education and in personal relationships, but our expectation is that we will have a measure of control which will give us the opportunity to succeed when we need to meet the road, as it rises towards us.  But what if you start returning questions with answers that no longer fit into the mould of tradtional, or convenient or even comfortable, thus making you vulnerable and unsure of where you are menat to be and how you can get there.  Well this may very well be such a time in the lives of many people.  Looking for an easy way out of the things which were previously fairly simple to answer are now a more complicated solution and no matter how we look at it, the faith that we possess is about to be tested.  It may feel like you are the recipient of unnecessary stones being hurled at you from all sides, but perhaps it is the time to gather those very stones and build a wall to protect yourself. Maybe you have been fighting for so long and you have to accept that as much as you want a different outcome you have to let it go. We need to fight as hard as possible to not be controlled by people, money or past experiences despite the attacks we face and learning the art of responding to the challenge instead of reacting to the situation becomes a major key to thinking straight and finding a way to gain a different outlook.  Whether you are a quiet peson or one that has no option but to share your feelings it nevertheless remains a time of choosing to stay in control.   I believe that we should not live in guilt or be bound by so called "mistakes" that we have made. Find peace in what you are doing at the moment. Divide your time appropriately and try to give a 100% to a few important things rather than 20% towards everything.  In other words focus. Separate the things you can control (and there are more than you think) from those beyond your control. Make time to get fresh air and clear your mind especially during times of great trials because it is easy to sit and stew and worry about everything you face.  What about working on our relationships, especially the ones that matter - this would be a good time to focus on the important ones and not to let go of them at a time when close relationships are really hard to come by. We all need a little time of solitude to really give us perspective of what can and should occupy our time, focus and efforts.  Avoid bitterness even though it is very hard to do in practice.  When things are not going according to plan the easiest thing is to avert the blame and grow jealous and angry towards others that appear to be doing so well.  But remember they too may be going through a tough time so sharing with others and listening to their story may be encouraging to them and uplifiting to your own soul. Make some pancakes and do the symbolic flipping of negative thoughts into positive ones. Don't stop doing the positive things in your life that were good and fun and exciting, simply because it would seem that the mood has changed and that you should abandon those things, to "truly experience" the bad time you are going through.  Because remember every small moment of joy is a brush stroke on the canvas of life and the whole painting is always better than a few loose lines.  Together the hardest times can become the first chapter in the rest of your life.  As said by Mary Oliver "one day you finally knew what you had to do and began".