Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Dead Wood

I think I came up with this concept when I retired from teaching. I thought about all my friends, relatives and acquaintances. Some I was close with and others it was casual. I decided to separate the wheat from the chafe. I only wanted to keep in touch or have a relationship with anyone who actually contributed to my life. However many years I had left to live would be filled with people of my choosing. No more hanger ons. No more complainers, negatives. No more only what you can do for meers. Would there be only a few left. Indeed! Better this way. Like a bowling alley after a throw, the dead wood has be eliminated from my life. I have been eliminated from other people's lives. Why? Since I moved from Rhode Island most of my old acquaintances have not kept in touch. My relatives never kept in touch when I lived there. Here, in Florida, my friends have gotten the message that I have considered them Dead Wood and eliminated me too. Happy! Very! Why people invite stress and unhappiness into their lives, I will never understand. Want to be happy? Press that button in you and eliminate your Dead Wood.

Friday, March 12, 2010

Luck Versus Karma

The term "you're lucky" is thrown out all the time when something out of the ordinary happens. When a person gets three aces, a net cord shot in tennis, catching a foul ball at a baseball game. Just to mention a few. I heard this often when I was planning to move to Florida. I would tell people that luck had nothing to do with it. People live where they want and do what they want. No luck involved.
Now Karma being involved is a whole new animal. Karma is the belief that any bad or good deed is repaid, no matter how insignificant the deed may have been. This crosses present and past lives. I do believe that Karma is the reason that people seem "lucky". Some people have led good lives and so repaid. Everyone has some transgressions and so not every day is perfect. It is the people who perpetuate their bad behaviors and decisions that incur the more wrath in life. Life is about learning from our mistakes. When people live a lie they cannot reveal the truth because everything will unravel.

Which brings us to the popular expression " that's not fair". Fair is an interesting concept. people assume that there is fairness in the world. I would say there is a balance. i believe that Life is about everything evening out. I, at this point in my life, do not sweat the small stuff. I pay an overdraft on a check and I get a two for one at the grocery store. I lose a tennis lesson and I get one from out of the blue. Despair leads to negativity. I have tried to put aside negativity in my life. OK, I do despair sometimes because of my Pisces sign. I have no tolerance for negative people. I avoid them like the plague. Can't even stand to talk with them. My wife says that when I am done with someone it shows on my face and my body language. Life is Fair. You have take Life in it's full context and not an isolated incident. Older people have the ability to sort things out better than young people.

Am I lucky or is it Karma? Karma is the reason things happen to me. I wouldn't want my life left to chance


Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Retired Teachers and Knowing who you are!

I am a retired teacher and I have tried to distance myself from the flaws teachers have. Teachers are loud, obnoxious, know it alls.
Always ready to put their two cents in and happy to take command of any situation. It seems retired teachers act the very same way. They do not realize that the world is not their classroom and people are not their students. They need, as I have tried to, with some success, the loud part is still a challenge, know their place. Teachers, they are no longer and people don't want to be confronted with who they were. Hopefully, they have new interests and jobs. Which brings me to the second point of the blog. I believe you are what you do, not what you hope to do. I know many people who say they do this or that. In reality they have those skills but only aspire to actually do that skill. An actor is an actor when they actually act, professionally or amateur, the important thing is to act. You can aspire and hope all you want. You have to get out there and do it. Anyone who has a trade or skill and doesn't use it is, to me, wasting the precious time we have here on earth. I am not very religious but I do believe everyone was given a talent. Sure, life is a chance and not everything is guaranteed. I have incorporated my teaching skills into teaching tennis with some success. Know yourself! Know who are and what you were meant to do and do it! I hope you have as much success and fun as I have had.