“My invitation to you is to begin living every moment
as though you are miraculous and deserve to live an extraordinary life. Fake it
if you must and keep faking it until it's real to you. The gift you will be
giving yourself is a lifelong journey of discovery, one that is infinite and
infinitely rewarding. Begin the journey. Today. This moment. Now.”
― Robert White
― Robert White
As I look around, I notice that most of the
people that surround me and are part of my circle of “friends,” lead the same
life that I live… Overlooking the details, the life I live is probably very
similar to that of my counterparts on the opposite side of the world. We make a
living to afford ourselves life’s simple pleasures and autonomy; we fall in and
out of love, stay in bad relationships, grow in commitment, we socialize as
much as time permits, and we deal with social and personal obligations and
expectations. For those of us who have
children, we manage that responsibility too…
For most of us, the basis of our lives is
an ordinary one.
We have to understand that the definition
of “ordinary” is perceived differently from one person to another. Regardless
of the perception that “ordinary” has, it is impossible for each and every
person to be the same. The common thread in “ordinary” is that (most likely
within our environment and society) ordinary people will blend.
If when living your ordinary life, you
don’t settle for riding the wave and become content with blending in, but
instead you thrive on doing things with determination and integrity...
well…that’s what makes you an extra-ordinary person. Your daily routine filled with kindness, genuine interest and love
weighs heavier than an out-of-the-norm burst of gentleness. Being
extraordinary is putting forth the best of you in anything and everything you
want, or try to achieve it; being a great mom, being a great spouse/partner,
being a great friend, or even being a great employee.
There are many thankless jobs that we do as
humans every day, which to some might seem insignificant, but in reality, they
are extraordinary. I can’t help but think of the tragic events of 9/11, where
“ordinary” firemen and policemen became extraordinary superheroes and legends.
I think of simple things like the person who makes my morning blend at
Starbucks; although they might not be saving lives from a burning building,
helping me stay awake after a long night, and enabling me to focus on the tasks
at work, is an extraordinary achievement. Okay, so maybe I’m aggrandizing
things, but you still understand my point. All it takes to become extraordinary
is to consistently do your best at whatever it is that you do. Once in a while, your number will be
called, and that’s when you get to display (in an extraordinary fashion) all
the things you have been working on in your ordinary routine....
Although I consider myself at times more
fortunate than others around me, (allowing me to rate my life as successful in
terms of emotion versus accomplishments), I still realize that I’m deficient in
many areas compared to some others. Nevertheless, my accomplishments in life
and the way I go about achieving them or working on them makes me
extraordinary.
I’m
living my “ordinary” life in an extraordinary way…
My disposition makes me understand that I’m
not “better than” or “less than,” but that I should just live the life that I
have in the most positive, focused and purposeful way I can. This will still be
true, even if the only person I impact is myself and direct family. Impacting
and performing for an audience will weigh the same as if it’s for self or one
person; the action (its effect and the
depth) is what makes you extraordinary, not your audience.
In conclusion, we should all know that
however uneventful our lives can be, we all have the capacity to live an
extraordinary life. Any level of success requires work and motivation, heart
and strength. To be extraordinary is to conquer your fears and opposition; it
is to be content and appreciative of where you are and to be the best and live
the best you can under all circumstances.
The
thing about me is that there's nothing ordinary but everything extraordinary…
“The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is
that little extra.”
― Jimmy Johnson
― Jimmy Johnson
How
about you? Is your life filled with extraordinary tales, moments…? Do you recognize
and enjoy YOU being extraordinary (as you know you are!)?
To our ‘extra-ordinary’ lives…
RosieSandz
