What I mean when I say Life is about Latitude is that life
is really about choices, but choosing to be happy is all about Latitude and
Attitude. No, I’m not referring to a certain Jimmy Buffett song and I don’t
mean catching a flight to St. Somewhere and sipping margaritas on a Caribbean
beach. Although that could make me very happy, unfortunately I am not a
millionaire like Jimmy. Even if I was, money doesn’t buy happiness…it’s a
choice we have to make every day. Any way you slice it, no matter how good you
got it, life is an UPHILL climb and that’s what I mean by latitude.
No one likes to feel down or low. There’s a reason they call
a good feeling a high. Every single day
we have to make a choice to climb the hill, or for some, it might be a
mountain. There are things in life that happen can bring us down, IF we choose
to allow it! We may be dealing with something as big as a disaster, the end of
a relationship, or sometimes it’s just a depressing movie or a sad song on the
radio that can trigger a bad memory or a bad feeling. For some, it’s old baggage.
It’s easy to say you forgive but not so easy to forget and if you can’t forget,
then you haven’t truly forgiven. I don’t
mean that you have to completely erase everything from your memory in order to
forget, but it’s a subconscious decision not to allow bad memories or feelings
of animosity to surface and control your thoughts. You push them aside and focus on what’s ahead
like driving on a road.
The road in life might seem long, but in reality it is short
and your final destination will be here before you know it, sometimes sooner
that we’d like. If you are constantly looking through the rearview mirror you
can’t enjoy the view in front of you. Furthermore, if you’re not focused on the
road, that’s when you run off into the ditch. Take for instance, if you’re
traveling on vacation and you run off the road, it takes more time and energy
to get yourself back on the road and takes time away from your planned activities
or relaxation…or worse, by the time you get there you are so flustered and
stressed out that it takes even longer to calm down before you can even begin
to enjoy yourself. Some people can even choose to let something like that ruin
their entire vacation.
Ok, now that we took a little side trip, let’s get back to
the climb. Whether you’re climbing a mountain or walking up a hill, it’s always
harder with more weight on your back. This is why hikers carry small,
lightweight backpacks with only the essentials. Even in today’s world of insane
airport security and baggage fees we have learned to pack light. You only pack
what’s necessary for your trip ahead. You wouldn’t bring a suitcase full of
dirty laundry with you, so why would you carry old baggage around with you throughout
your life? If you are carrying heavy bags up a hill, it’s inevitable that they
will either pull you down by sheer force of gravity or trip you up and send you
rolling down in a landslide! As far as leaving the baggage behind, it’s easier
said than done for some. You cannot change the past or control what others have
done, but only you have the power to change your future if you stop allowing
yourself to relive the bad memories and start focusing on the here and now.
The climb actually started when we born and will continue
until we die. Whether you’re a novice hiker with a hill to climb or you find
yourself with a mountain to scale, chances are at some point along the way you
will fall and get hurt or worse, someone you trusted will push you right down
into the canyon. Whether you end up with
a scraped knee or internal bleeding…a wound cannot heal if you ignore it or keep
picking at it. Regardless of the intensity of the wound, if you let it fester
without seeking treatment they can eventually kill you. Most of the time, the
skinned knees in life are easily dealt with by slapping a bandage on and going
about your merry way but others require much greater care. The treatment you
seek depends on your ability to deal with the situation, but whether you need a
little physical therapy or a surgeon, still hypothetically speaking, deal with
it and then the healing begin. Yes, it takes time to heal, but not forever. You
can either allow the bacteria to keep eating at you or you can put some
antibiotic on it and let it heal. You could even think your healing nicely and
one day, you choose to stick your finger in it, full of bacteria, and the
healing process has to start all over again. That’s when you have to make a
choice to leave it covered, let the healing continue and move on. Even the
smallest distractions like a happy song or a relaxing activity can help change
your thoughts and help you shake it off, stand up, and keep climbing. As soon
as you hear that voice in your head or that sad song on the radio saying to
look in the rearview mirror or to open up that old wound, it’s up to you to
block it out, ignore it and move on.
Chances are, you will always have a scar to remind you of
your past wound, but a scar is not an invitation to re-open the old wound, it’s
a Victory! There’s a reason scar tissue is stronger and tougher than the skin around
it. It’s part of the body’s natural defense and should only be a reminder that
what you have overcome has made you a better, stronger person.
Focus on the good things, the opportunities ahead and turn
to whatever keeps your head up, whether it’s your faith in God, your family or
just sheer hope for the good things to come. No one else can do it for you…it’s
a choice YOU must make every single day because you can only continue your
journey one day at a time or choose to be stuck at the bottom!
