Tracks In The Dust

A Father's Advice About Learning the Mission of Life

Archive for the tag “Postive Thinking”

12 Jun 2014

Taking A Chance

A fathers advice ” You can fail at what you don’t really want to do, so you might as well take a chance on doing what you love.”

Very sensible words coming from Jim Carey, a movie comedian with a very silly sense of humor. I think a lot of us “think” this, but how many of us act on those thoughts? Not many I would imagine. It would take us out of the comfort zone that many of us believe we are in. Not that it is truly safe.

But we imagine the brass-ring is out of reach, that there are only “some” people who have the luck or skills to make things be successful in their lives. I think I am in that camp probably most of the time. But every once in a while I have to be reminded that this is an opportunity to do “what you love” .

The reward of helping others, of being part of the solution and providing positive outlook on life can start with just having faith in God. It could be that we just need to take a chance on those things that will make a difference. Hard to know… but the fact is the alternative gets summed up pretty good in 1 minute in this speech made by one comedian who got pretty serious…if even for a moment.

Posted in Doing Things That Will Change Your Life and tagged Acceptance, Chances, Change, choices, doing what you love, Happiness, Jim Carey, life is precious, People, Postive Thinking, Self-Awareness, Sprituality

09 Jun 2014

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Our 35 Years of Sharing

There is no way to put it into perspective completely. Today my wife and I celebrate 35 years of being married.

It has been a marriage filled with joy and sorrow, adventure and patience, love and anger, some victories and some regrets. The memories are precious, even as some of them are filled with cloudy remembrances, they are part of our love growing together.

We were married as our parents opined “very young” ( my wife was 19 and I was 23). We didn’t go in blindly to the marriage, but I think we were naive about what the journey ahead would be. But headfirst we jumped into life with the promise of a bright future.

Thirty-five years later we have relocated multiple times across the US ( mainly because of job related reasons), we have 4 great children that have supplied ( and continue to supply) a house full of love and family dramas. But over all we have been blessed. Not by wealth, not by possessions, not by health or constant good fortune, but by each other. It has not been perfect.

I want to quote a wise spiritual leader, pastor, author I have had the honor to know, Steve Lucas, who also recently posted some sentiments about his marriage on his site (Yesterday Lucas): These really captured my heart as things that I feel are so true. “Marriage is not about perfection. It’s about two people, stumbling through life together, growing in their relationship with each other and with God. Forgiveness, patience, a bad memory, and extra love are all ingredients that are required to make it in marriage.”

And I agree with that 100%. As he explains also that there are a handful of days that could be good to have called a “do over”. I can think of several in recent memory ( some further back are a bit cloudy, but the remnants are still there ). But as he says, do-over’s would likely be at the expense of the wisdom gained through mistakes. Again I couldn’t agree more. “ Thankfully, in every failure there has been forgiveness; in every trial, we shared them together.”

“I don’t deserve my wife. But then again, neither do I deserve the Grace of God. But I’ll happily accept both.”

I am blessed with the happiness of what is truly the good fortune in my life, to know true love.

Posted in Learning Lessons Along the Journey Of Life and tagged Acceptance, choices, Faith, Fmaily, Forgiveness, God's love, Grace, Imperfection, Marriage, Memories, moments, Postive Thinking, relationships, True Love, Wedding Anniversaries

07 Jun 2014

If It Makes You Happy

“If it makes you happy, then why are you so sad?” Great words from a great song that my family loved. It is just an easy question that can sometimes have the most difficult answer.

But really what is it that makes you happy? Is it goodness, something that you can cherish and embrace and love because you are you?

Then why the hell are you so sad (as the song goes)? Life is so very short and then it is over and we can look forward to the eternity ahead. But in the mean time we all need to get more inspired. There is so little time, and while we are here on Earth we have to make our tracks.

We have to embrace those things that are positive, make the best of them and be sure we are “right” with our world first. Before we are right with the rest of the world and all it offers, before we try to search for the meaning of life for others, we need to understand our meaning.

It is “purpose”- and those that defer purpose, or decline it all together are missing so much. I mean do they look at it like “first you live, then you die and make the most of everything in-between”? Or do you look at it as the more you embrace the purpose of life, the more happy you will be?

“If it makes you happy” doesn’t mean to do whatever you want and damn the circumstances. It means what really makes you happy when you understand the purpose of what you are doing here. Understand your part in the process of life, and it is a grand scheme… but a good one.

So advice to my kids: make sure you enjoy it, but be sure you understand your purpose. And look for it- when it arrives be sure to embrace it- and you will be happy.

Here ya go kids. What we used to sing in the car as loud as we could. If it Makes You Happy!

Posted in Doing Things That Will Change Your Life and tagged Acceptance, Change, choices, Finding Your Way Back, Happiness, Happy, Joy, life is precious, Looking for Happiness, moments, Postive Thinking, Sadness, Sheryl Crow

30 May 2014

Losing My Reflection

It is easy. Easy to get lost in the everyday demands that make up life. Missing time to reflect on who you really are.

How do you program that into your calendar? Making sure that you take the time to actually know who “you are” instead of who other people expect you to be. It can be struggle, even more so if you are losing your reflection. Your own time. By the time you find out you are lost in the daily routine it can seem too late to make a change.

But change you must. Getting back the image that you know you are. The image in the mirror of the person who brought you to this place in time. Don’t look at the wrinkles, or the wear and tear around the eyes. Look deeper and see what is inside of you that defines the meaning of your life. It’s really not about you, it is about much more than just you. But you have to start by examining that part of you that is fading.

Get the mirror out and really look past your skin, look past the makeup or the hair cut. Take toll of what is going to help make it long-term. The small stuff isn’t going to really make a difference tomorrow. Like they say, don’t sweat the small stuff. Let go. Let God have a shot. Let your spirit be more free to take part in your soul.

In the end I know I get lost in my own schedule. I get accustomed to the routine that has provided me comfort (nothing wrong with comfort). But that comfort has allowed me to be complacent and somewhat lazy. And then just to justify it I reason out that its okay. But it’s really just me losing my reflection of life.

Kids, It is just that easy. No matter what age you are, not matter what you think you are doing now- look closely in the mirror. Are you there?

Posted in Doing Things That Will Change Your Life and tagged Acceptance, Change, choices, Doubt, Faith, life is precious, mental-health, Postive Thinking, Reality Check, reflection, Self-Awareness, taking time, tracks in the dust, Who Are You

07 May 2014

Someone is Watching

I opened my email the other day and some Internet company was offering close out electronics: One of them was a “spy watch” on sale for under $60. I mean it records video and audio ( and tells time) and of course it can be used with no one else knowing. Then easily download your recording to your computer.

Aside from sounding like James Bond espionage gadgets- it made me shudder.

It also made me think about how easy it is today for ANY ONE to capture ANY THING on video or audio.

It’s in today’s headlines – private recordings that have lambasted a very sad man due to his prejudice. But it’s in our every day lives also. We cannot be candid any more. Our comments in a desperate situation, our misaligned humor at a time when we are vulnerable. the things we can say that can be pulled from context and made to be something 180 degrees the opposite. It is and will forever be the world we live in going forward.

Like George Orwell’s 1984, big brother may be watching, but so is everyone else.

These days nearly everyone has a video and sound recorder in their pocket. Always be aware that someone could have sound or pics of you at your worse. Now there is no room for error. And once it is captured, it can be posted on the Internet and become a permanent record of the moment, good or bad or otherwise. Leveling permanent damage intentional or not-those are images that will be hard to forget (not like those photos in the shoe box). They can come up again someday randomly.

Candid unguarded commentary? Its a new generation in so many ways. You have to think and ask yourself “just what are you saying?”

Can you be your own social editor for all you say and do to be sure it will be okay?

Well, not me – I am not perfect. I am going to make stupid remarks, going to do something that may look silly, offhanded or careless. Not intentional. perhaps in a fit of anger or frustration. But today there is someone watching- and they may see it as unacceptable. “He who is without sin cast the first stone.” Stones are still flying. And I guess we are all helping in some way.