Postcards from the Funny Farm

To live life without learning is foolishness. In a world full of preachers and teachers, who should we listen to? I thought about it for awhile and I came up with this for myself: I listen and learn from people who are determined, dependable, and compassionate. Those three adjectives can exist independent of one another in a person and in those cases, I am only 1/3 interested.? It is the people who contain all 3 that fascinate and teach me the most in my life journey. Usually in my blog I like to post pictures to illustrate my point. In this case, instead, I can only write what each trait looks like since they are too abstract to produce picture results:

Determination looks like finishing a task before you start another. It’s the setting of short and long term goals and then determining to meet them whatever come what may.? If set goals end up being too much, then you are at least closer than you started. “Aim for the moon, land among the stars.”

Dependable looks like someone who stays with the same people year after year. Dependable takes care of loved ones. Dependable calls people back and dependable often makes the first call, without a reason. Dependable has little anxiety because the option to run away from things is not present.? There is no fear of failure, but rather fear of not fulfilling one’s cause or commitment in life.

Compassionate looks like letting other people fail. Compassionate will accept counter offers. Compassionate sees the world from a lower position when pride threatens proper judgment. Compassionate is the teacher in all of us that recognizes we are all students at some point.

In friends, co-workers, and even family members we should look to people with these three adjectives in their personality. In a world that is increasingly driven by cash, flash, and appearance, it’s easy to learn the wrong things from the wrong people. Do you want to go through life with the class of a pack mule or on the back of english saddles? With a little effort, the latter is possible. Determination, dependability, and compassion are in short supply in our world. Folks in my life who show these traits, whether they are my gardener or my superintendent, are the ones I learn the most from in my life journey.