My 'Extraordinary', ordinary life...

“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

                                                   Source

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

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