To Soar Like the Eagle

We are coming up fast on the ending of another year - this time the year is 2010 - and there are some philosophical things I learned this year, perhaps later in my life than for others. I think they are worthy of sharing and it goes like this -
When family life is stranger than fiction you'll be better off to just roll with it. If you feel abandoned let it be - find a church family, find a family of friends. Don't try to resist your feelings and don’t try to change it unless you were the root. Most of us live a reasonably long life if we are healthy. Whatever offended you or caused hurt feelings will either reverse on its own, or truth will throw itself upon you and explain itself better. If you are lucky you may inherit knowledge, and that could be enough to get you to the other side.

When history is stranger than fiction stop what you are doing, give yourself an adequate space to think deep and long, and then wait for the courage to adjust. You might become its friend as you turn it over in your mind, but rushing to conclusions is a fruitless art. No recorded history will ever be the ultimate story and the sides to historical facts may be full of details you did not anticipate. If you feel lost as you meander through bits and pieces, consider the possibility that your analyses may be slanted by bias or just incomplete. Let life bring to you what it wants by its own clock. Logic might become apparent when you are ready to be the student rather than a self-appointed teacher, and life is an ongoing learning experience anyway.

When love becomes stranger than fiction let your heart lead your head. Your head had no right to get involved in the first place. A real love is based on many things, only some of which will stand the test of time. When the body of love leaves the spirit of love, hang on to your feelings from the experience in the way one takes a souvenir from a journey. Never hide or deny sentiments. Memories will change in color and intensity as you walk into what is ahead. You can keep the whole rainbow if you choose. The decision is yours but it may be better to put memories away in a secure place, rather than angrily discarding them in the bin. They are not baggage; they are part of who you are.

When making it through the hard times is stranger than fiction, count your blessings several times a day and not just the gifts from days gone by. Never assume that blessings have run dry. Beautiful things you cannot even imagine are just down the road; there is never a dead end to good times, security, peace. Generosity is what we live by and that virtue will never leave you sitting on the curb. A feeling of well-being is what we share with others, and they with us. Do not isolate; find your peers. Traditional values kick into play when you are living with the same struggles as those around you; new fellowship is fostered in the process by the guidance of faith. You were meant to soar like the eagle. Sometimes a broader patience is mandated, and less personal aspiration is required.

Alice Elizabeth Cagle, October 23, 2010