Perspective.
Perspective is a wonderful thing. It allows us as adults to understand what our parents were trying to say to us when they said “study hard and stay in school.” It opens our eyes to a 20-20 view of something. Hindsight is 20-20, but perhaps perspective is also 20-20. Depending, of course, on your perspective.
I am coming up on my one-year anniversary, and as I approach it my perspective is changing.
Quite rapidly as it happens.
As I’m sure you’ve all heard “time flies when you’re having fun,” and loosing weight has been
Fun!?
Work!
Daunting!
Demanding!
(expletive delete here)!!!
(Can a brother buy an adjective here?)
____________
You can fill in the blank with your favorite.
That statement kind of lends itself to what I’m saying here.
We, each one of us, may put in a different adjective depending on our individual perspective. The unique geographic location, as it were, on our own paths.
Our time lines are different, often not by much but a little off. Our lives are different, again often not by much. We all have some commonality. Commonality that we have shared with each other in-group or personally. There are people whom I’ve met on this journey that I may never have come in contact with otherwise. People with whom I now share a bond with, that if it weren’t for this commonality, this journey, I’m sure I would have not known, or would have known me. People with whom I have cultural, ethnic, or social differences. People that I now gladly call friend and with whom I confide in. People with out having made this decision I would have never met. People who have helped me in a tough time, thru tough times and who continue to help me, and hopefully will be there to help me in the future. People with whom I share one of my (and perhaps theirs) biggest life decisions with.
We share so many of the same experiences, and feelings, and opinions. It has become such a great and important part of my journey to be associated with so many great and interesting and loving, caring people that it may be the best thing I can take out of the experience.
Ok back on track here, sorry to ramble all over as usual.
Once again going to perspective. I never though this would be an aspect of this journey, and as I approach my first anniversary I can also see how the associations with people with different perspective of the same thing are valuable to my continued successful journey.
I am nearing my goals.
This is a bold statement, I know. I have been very, very lucky in my journey. I’ve hit a few bumps on the road, and at times my goals have seemed like the horizon, you know you can never quite reach it. But I have worked hard and applied all the input I can soak up from everyone, and that horizon doesn’t seem to far away right now.
My “perspective” is changing once again.
My aim is realigning itself from “how do I get there?” to “how do I stay here?”
The old “now what?” question.
So I am once again soaking up everything I can get my brain around and trying to learn from everyone who has been down this path before me. I have cultivated associations with people who are several years out (unfortunately not members of our group) and I’m trying to glean as much information from their individual and collective prospective, and I’m trying to apply it to my unique journey.
It has helped adjust my personal perspective.
Greatly.
I have been unsure of the next step, don’t get me wrong I’m not at that maintenance point yet, just getting close and gearing up. In fact my original goals, what I thought seemed reasonable to attain, are beginning to refocus.
You know that place…. The place where you think “I would be happy if I could just get to _______lbs.”
God how I hate statements like that!
Getting to a certain weight or goal won’t magically make you “happy.” What is happy anyway and why do we as humans feel the nee to be happy all the time?
But that’s a question for another time.
Perspective and the next step…. Back on track.
My personal perspective has and is being influenced by what I know I can achieve, what I hope to achieve, what I think I can achieve (with some extra work and sacrifices) and what I want to achieve
.
Also by what I see that others have achieved, and the things that they have done to get there.
The sacrifices, changes to their lives, life changing decisions that they have made, and how it has affected them, positively or negatively.
You can see the differences in the more successful and less successful of the people who have trodden down this path.
I can see the differences.
I can see them and apply them to my personal journey.
I can learn from their correct choices and their incorrect choices.
It all adds to my personal perspective.
Perspective is a wonderful, wondrous thing!!!
I hope to see the path in front of me more clearly thru the eyes of people who have been down a similar path before I have.
It can help me chose the correct fork in the road ahead, and avoid the pitfalls that lay in wait ahead of us all.
Using their journeys as a road map, and kind of GPS as it were. In fact that is a more accurate analogy. A GPS that you can stay in constant contact with and always get updates from. “How’s the traffic ahead?” “What’s the best route?” “Where should I stop on the way?” “Where’s the next bathroom?”
Even better than a GPS, because a GPS can’t tell you “stay off the BQE at this time of the day.” Only a real live person who has traveled the road can give you that kind of info.
It seems that people who have been there and done that are better than computers….
Go figure!!!
Well in closing I want to thank each and every one of the people with whom it has been my pleasure to be associated with here, and in person.
I have and will continue to use your perspective, and to add yours to my own.
Together we are so much stronger and capable than we are apart!
Together we will all reach our goals!
With all your help and input I will reach mine!
Tata for now.
Tony
