Written By: Isiah S. Magsino
I choose to thank the trees for providing oxygen. I choose to lay out in the sun because it warms my skin. I choose to say hello to the bird that chirps and whirls by the cottage every morning and I ask, "Rusty, is that you?"
Rusty being the mid-sized golden-locked shetland sheepdog that was my best friend for 14-years. Until I left for college, I never went to bed or woke up in the morning without him by my side. Even though he passed last November, I still like to think he still sticks around.
Although this sounds like another sappy self-help anecdote, I think curating my life specifically to gratitude and ambition has sparked a life better than I could've ever imagined.
I think about this a lot: how my reality is what it is. How the 17-year-old boy in high school who went to sleep every night engulfed in needles now rests with the disbelief that you must leave real life to experience escapism--that there is such a thing as a fantasy outside of the life you're already living.
It’s a mindset that has especially been helpful during these times where we fear each other at Trader Joe’s and enjoying the outdoors is an indulgence.
In this twilight zone, people like me-- recent grads pursuing a career that seems to know how to articulate every ideology with precision except for stability-- have every right to raise their fists in the air and plead "why?"
In this twilight zone, people like me-- recent grads pursuing a career that seems to know how to articulate every ideology with precision except for stability-- have every right to raise their fists in the air and plead "why?"
After all, we were just getting our lives started. Some of us were finally getting the hang of things at their 9-5s, or 7-11s, or 12s, or sometimes even 1s. Some of us were working at coffee shops in between cover letters and felt that they were finally on the brink of finding their new tribe. And as the motions of our new, adult lives seemed to get easier, they were disrupted; Our woes were magnified as another roadblock lodged itself in the middle of the road.
After years of studying and interning, we file for unemployment. We wait for that first check to hit our already thin accounts in order to get by for the next month. Some of us move back in with our parents after we swore we wouldn't (I mean, we didn't have much choice). Our futures continue into a void where the only definite answer is one that embodies the uncertainty.
But despite the apocalyptic series of, sigh, unfortunate events, I sit here under a grand white Oaktree in one of the Carolinas. I sit in the perimeter of the allotted shade she provides, feeling her cool offering from my torso up and the sun's beams from the torso down. I sip coffee from a teacup as my body feels like the perfect ice-cream sundae, and Rusty and his friends continue to chirp loudly. And even though the weight of what's mentioned beforehand presents itself before me, I begin another list: I think of my family's health. I think about my friend's health. I think of all the time I have to write and read. I think of the opportunity to upgrade my cooking skills. I think of all the piano music I can listen to undisturbed.
This isn’t meant to be a nod to a mystical level of mental power. Rather, I point directly into an adjusted way of thinking during a time of adversity and encourage a try.
This practice of thinking-- endless gratitude and mindfulness while refusing to harp on the negatives-- continues to contribute to the immense sustained happiness I feel often. The particular curation of my life and how I constantly envision living it somehow never fails to materialize.
And without sounding like a corny LinkedIn influencer, I guess with all the good that seems to be apparent in my life, I can't help but succumb to the belief of how powerful the mind can truly be.
It’s no secret that this pandemic continues to stretch and dilute every aspect of life. I can note specific opportunities that melted through my hands as it began making their way through the world. But as the world moves through these unprecedented times, I know they'll pick up once again when it's time. I know that the world will snap back and this will pass as it’s meant to. But for now, I choose to live in the days that are present and give thanks to it.
By no means am I swimming in a large safety net (I’m a freelance writer, so quite the opposite). But I know that when I consider all things mentioned above, I can consider myself privileged. And I know the audience that this comes across can look at themselves and do the same.
This practice of thinking-- endless gratitude and mindfulness while refusing to harp on the negatives-- continues to contribute to the immense sustained happiness I feel often. The particular curation of my life and how I constantly envision living it somehow never fails to materialize.
And without sounding like a corny LinkedIn influencer, I guess with all the good that seems to be apparent in my life, I can't help but succumb to the belief of how powerful the mind can truly be.
It’s no secret that this pandemic continues to stretch and dilute every aspect of life. I can note specific opportunities that melted through my hands as it began making their way through the world. But as the world moves through these unprecedented times, I know they'll pick up once again when it's time. I know that the world will snap back and this will pass as it’s meant to. But for now, I choose to live in the days that are present and give thanks to it.
By no means am I swimming in a large safety net (I’m a freelance writer, so quite the opposite). But I know that when I consider all things mentioned above, I can consider myself privileged. And I know the audience that this comes across can look at themselves and do the same.
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