Five observations from today... (or just random rambling)

1. Sleep is the most important factor in overall health, above nutrition, above exercise, because even if you're doing great with the latter two, sleep deprivation will undo that good, and may even make them detrimental. Exercise without rest will eventually kill you. Also sleep regulates neurotransmitters which have an extremely powerful effect on mood, so all the positive thinking in the world won't do you much good if you're sleep deprived.
2. Purpose rocks! When you have something that excites you, the day flies by!
3. Communication first and foremost involves the willingness to not judge people solely by their actions, but taking the time to find out what their intent is. (and what they may be struggling with at the time.) If someone takes an action with bad intent, they deserve to be judged, if someone makes an error of judgement with good intentions, it can be forgiven... but you have to take the time to find out which it is, before you judge.
4. Referring to 3., if someone seems to behave irrationally, see 1. Sleep deprivation is often the cause of that as well. (note most "chemical imbalances" cited for causes of depression, bipolar etc. are neurotransmitters that get regulated during proper sleep, and which psychiatrists try to artificially bring back into balance using drugs.) Sometimes, we just need a good nap. :o)
5. Sleep deprivation or bad judgement, note, still don't justify bad behaviour, but they make it more understandable, and that knowledge can be a tremendous first step to correcting.

Oh and my grandson's cute eh? (that's at birth, he is now 21 months old! :o)

Honesty.... what is it really?

Most people would probably say that they already know the answer to this question.

It would certainly seem to be self-evident. People will speak of not lying, cheating or stealing, and of course, that would be hard to argue with.

However, on a deeper level, I would suggest that honesty means "loyalty to the facts" and that means that we are honest, most of all with ourselves. It has been said that, of all the people we can fool, the easiest is ourselves.

Many times, facing stark reality can appear to be quite daunting. We will minimize our shortcomings, for example, so we can feel better about ourselves, (and also because it saves us from doing anything about them.)

We will rationalize and justify those behaviours that deep down we know we should change.

In the end, though, this behaviour may seem advantageous, and arguably it is comforting, in the short run, but the price to pay in the long term is very high.

Once formed, the habit of evading reality, can lead us to disaster, including, but not restricted to, losing touch with the distinction between reality and illusion as well as a total loss of self-esteem.

People will speak of the need to develop acceptance, when it comes to reality, and I would agree that this is a great first step. Of course, people always say acceptance is the first step towards change. However, I would suggest that we want to go further, to realizing that reality is our greatest friend and ally, and the quicker we deal with it head on, the greater the odds of a favorable outcome, so I will sugggest, not "accepting" but "cherishing" reality. The good stuff is awesome, but the scary stuff is all sources for personal growth so bring it on!

Alternatively, avoiding dealing with reality will only make things far worse in the long run, and that is why one of my very favorite quotes...(I may have used this in a previous entry) is "I'm not brave enough to be a coward!" (Ayn Rand)

Heroes live Life on Life's Terms!