In the movie Trainspotting, the first scene is of the main protagonist Renton, running from the police while listing a range of standard choices in life. A career, A big TV, a starter home etc. The closing scene runs through the same list but from a different perspective (but not running from the police), all because he ‘chose life.’
Have you ever thought about the choices available to you?
In my experience, people don’t often realize how many choices they must make in even just a day. Most choices are automatic, made at a sub-conscious level. Unless answering a question – ‘this or that?’ or ‘here or there?’ for example, we make choices without even realizing we are doing so.
Monday – does the very utterance of the word fill you with dread? Have you heaved a heavy sigh upon being forced out of your slumber by a soul crushing alarm, reminded again that the week begins now. Slogging your way through a morning routine committed to muscle memory and your first conscious decision is the syrup you would like in your coffee.
Sound familiar?
My standard response to someone who is in a state of morose is.
“There is always a choice.”
Often this is initially met with confusion before an excuse involving bills or such like is presented in response.
But there is always a choice. We chose the bills we have, the size of our mortgages, the finance on our cars, the subscription services we pay for and all the other wee luxuries we indulge in. We have chosen to base life around our salaries, sometimes to the point where we can’t afford to change our job. We don’t have expendable income to cut our hours for more personal time. We have built up own prisons.
The choice is always there, we can cut some of these needless expenses, we can lower our car finance by changing our choice of brand. We can lower your mortgage by moving into a more affordable home. We can change our lives by making choices that relieve us of the heaviness of our outgoings.
I am reminded of the Sun card in Tarot – an infant, naked on a horse in a walled garden, happy and in total bliss with everything around. Eventually the infant will grow, and as it does, these once happy surroundings can feel like a prison because they have outgrown their environment. Eventually they will choose to leave in search of new happiness appropriate to their present situation.
Do you really need a 5-bedroom house when your children have grown and moved away? Do you really need that fifty-thousand-pound car to drive 5 miles a day? Is it you or your Ego that needs it?
Perhaps we should really slow down and look at everything around us, work, home, possessions, and people – and ask some really hard questions.
Does this still serve Me or my Ego? Is this no longer of purpose?
It is amazing how many things we can let go of or move on from. This then gives us a new choice. What do we do with the resulting space in our life? Is the attachment to the car because we need to keep up appearances with our peers? Is the attachment to the house sentimental or because there is a very small chance of someone staying overnight in one of the spare bedrooms? Do we need the space for an abundance of possessions which have accumulated over the years?
One thing I have learned is that if you place your happiness in external things, you will never be happy, because there are always more things available. It is an empty void that can never be filled. Stripping these external things back and living a simpler life has really allowed me to choose to be happy.
I spent some time working over in Africa and quickly picked up on was how happy the people were. Sure, it was a tough life for them because their communities didn’t have access to the same facilities as we are accustomed to in the western world. But that meant that they had less distractions, they were able to bond over the hard times and share the good times. I sat watching a group of women and children at a water pump, it was a social experience and they all laughed and played. Yes, some of them may not have been able to feed themselves that day but instead of focusing on what they lacked they chose to focus on the things they did have. It was a very humbling experience and reminded me of exactly what I had to be grateful for.
So, in closing, if you get up on any day and heave a sigh of dread towards the day ahead. Slow down, look around and inside. Look at the choices you have in front of you. Start making the right choices to ensure you have the kind of day yesterday wishes it was and tomorrow looks forward to being.
CHOOSE LIFE!
Article by More to Life Elder – Andrew Greig
Article published in More to Life – Edition 67
