The other day I was wrestling with another one of life’s little problems, which of course always seems to companion with an agitated state of mind. Yup, I’m one of the “THOSE PEOPLE,” the one’s that take life way too seriously and thus are sentenced to suffer from the effects of the three headed monster agitation, stress and worry. It just so happened that day I was talking on the phone to a person I had just met, a very wise person, and I guess the negative undertow became a tad too visible and she said to me, “Bill, go for a walk. Take your camera and just go for a walk. I want you to observe the things around you and simply relax.” Well, I’m a photographer, so I found the advice appealing and besides I wasn’t getting anywhere to begin with that day in my negative frame of mind, so I did just that, I went for a walk with my camera.
As I went out the door I started thinking about the possible objects I could take a picture of. Now I was taking “THAT” too seriously! I’m a serious photographer and at the time I wasn’t anywhere special, thus no grand scenic’s were about to magically appear and the weather wasn’t especially conducive to a great photo, so the next National Geographic cover would have to wait and worse yet, I still felt angry inside. I knew I needed to square myself away and get focused on the job at hand, relaxing and taking a couple of pictures of something, anything I might find interesting, if I was to have any success on my little walk. It was then I recalled some very sage advice I’d read in one of my favorite photography books which said; “Sometimes the best picture’s right there at your feet. Look around and get a feel for your surroundings.” What that statement meant was, sometimes the photographer’s so obsessed with getting that next great image, he doesn’t take the time to look around where he’s at and notice the little things that are sometime’s right there at his feet that are actually quite beautiful in their own right.
Well, that got me to thinking, which at times for me is dangerous, but I took that advice one step further and thought to myself, “Would you just calm down and as they say, smell the roses! There’s help and positive signs all around you if you’ll just take the time to relax and observe.” In other words, the answers to my problems were right there at my feet I’d only take time to look and listen to what my own heart was telling me. It struck me that the primary reason I was agitated was because I was trying to be something I really wasn’t. It’s a problem that most of us have. There we are, trying to please everybody but ourselves and despite the Job title, the big house, the nice car and the six figure salary, we’re absolutely miserable and we just don’t know why. Isn’t having the big car or the six figure salary supposed to make us happy? They said it would!
I don’t care what your damn job title is or how smart you think you are or what model BMW you’re currently driving, if you’re unhappy, it’s because you’re disconnected from that which you truly are. If you’re achieving the things “They” said would make you happy and you’re in fact miserable, it’s simply because you’re not aligned with what it is you were sent here to do. I know, I know, easy to say, but nonetheless, it’s true. If you’re a corporate guy or gal and you have the big salary and the job tile with lots of consonants and the pretty house on the hill and you’re miserable you’ll remain that way until you’re doing what it was you were really wired to do.
So “Mr. Know it All” how am I supposed to figure that little problem out and I say, “What are you passionate about?” What are the things that you love to do where time seems to stand still, fatigue is never an issue and when you’re finished, you can’t wait to do it again? I’m guessing the answer to your question starts there. Do you love being outdoors on a mountain trail? Are you a lover of the arts and music? Do you go to a far off place every time you walk into your garden and chat with your plants? Do you love to read and write? Maybe you love working with kids? All I’m saying is if the job makes you miserable and there’s hobby’s that energize you and excite you, you’re looking at “Your Wiring.” That’s where you start and it’s important to start because life’s too short not to live it doing the things you love to do. There are people today that get paid lots of money because they do what they’re passionate about. They will tell you they never, ever work a day in their lives because they love what they’re doing. So just where is it written you can’t have the same kind of life?
As I went out the door I started thinking about the possible objects I could take a picture of. Now I was taking “THAT” too seriously! I’m a serious photographer and at the time I wasn’t anywhere special, thus no grand scenic’s were about to magically appear and the weather wasn’t especially conducive to a great photo, so the next National Geographic cover would have to wait and worse yet, I still felt angry inside. I knew I needed to square myself away and get focused on the job at hand, relaxing and taking a couple of pictures of something, anything I might find interesting, if I was to have any success on my little walk. It was then I recalled some very sage advice I’d read in one of my favorite photography books which said; “Sometimes the best picture’s right there at your feet. Look around and get a feel for your surroundings.” What that statement meant was, sometimes the photographer’s so obsessed with getting that next great image, he doesn’t take the time to look around where he’s at and notice the little things that are sometime’s right there at his feet that are actually quite beautiful in their own right.
Well, that got me to thinking, which at times for me is dangerous, but I took that advice one step further and thought to myself, “Would you just calm down and as they say, smell the roses! There’s help and positive signs all around you if you’ll just take the time to relax and observe.” In other words, the answers to my problems were right there at my feet I’d only take time to look and listen to what my own heart was telling me. It struck me that the primary reason I was agitated was because I was trying to be something I really wasn’t. It’s a problem that most of us have. There we are, trying to please everybody but ourselves and despite the Job title, the big house, the nice car and the six figure salary, we’re absolutely miserable and we just don’t know why. Isn’t having the big car or the six figure salary supposed to make us happy? They said it would!
I don’t care what your damn job title is or how smart you think you are or what model BMW you’re currently driving, if you’re unhappy, it’s because you’re disconnected from that which you truly are. If you’re achieving the things “They” said would make you happy and you’re in fact miserable, it’s simply because you’re not aligned with what it is you were sent here to do. I know, I know, easy to say, but nonetheless, it’s true. If you’re a corporate guy or gal and you have the big salary and the job tile with lots of consonants and the pretty house on the hill and you’re miserable you’ll remain that way until you’re doing what it was you were really wired to do.
So “Mr. Know it All” how am I supposed to figure that little problem out and I say, “What are you passionate about?” What are the things that you love to do where time seems to stand still, fatigue is never an issue and when you’re finished, you can’t wait to do it again? I’m guessing the answer to your question starts there. Do you love being outdoors on a mountain trail? Are you a lover of the arts and music? Do you go to a far off place every time you walk into your garden and chat with your plants? Do you love to read and write? Maybe you love working with kids? All I’m saying is if the job makes you miserable and there’s hobby’s that energize you and excite you, you’re looking at “Your Wiring.” That’s where you start and it’s important to start because life’s too short not to live it doing the things you love to do. There are people today that get paid lots of money because they do what they’re passionate about. They will tell you they never, ever work a day in their lives because they love what they’re doing. So just where is it written you can’t have the same kind of life?
I got back from my walk that day and I had four really nice images that I was proud of and I also had some ideas I was going to explore that I knew would put me on the right path to being a little happier and lot less concerned about my perceived problems. Life’s simply too short to spend it being stressed out and angry. It was meant to be filled with joy and happiness. It can only happen if you just take a walk and look at all the beautiful little things that are right there at your feet. Shush, be quiet. Hear it, that voice? It’ll tell you everything you need to know about what will make “You” happy. It should, it’s your inner voice after all.
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