Ha ha. Joke's on me. I'll never get
there. I'm not even Catholic any more, even though I was raised as such. Heck, I'm not even a believer. But still,
I have a deep regard for doing the right thing, or at least what I
feel is the right thing.
I suppose that it's for that reason,
many people consider me to be overly kind and decent, or in some
cases, a pushover. LOL
The thing is though, I'm no different
than anyone else. I have unkind and cruel thoughts, particularly
toward those who are unkind and cruel. Ironic right? And yes, people
piss me off. Absolutely. And oh boy, do I ever wish some people in my
life were doing a little closer to right, by themselves and others!
I'll never be a saint. None of us will.
None of us will ever be perfect. No way. Because we're human beings
and the perfect human simply does not exist.
One of the reasons that's true is
because every human being has a different idea of what perfection is.
Some folks are perfectly happy with maintaining a happy medium and
living with an “all things in moderation” philosophy, while
others find that unacceptable because all things are not acceptable
to them.
There are so many approaches to life
that all we can do is take the approach that's best for us and leave
others to do the same. And while some of the things other people do
may cause us worries and anxieties, unless they're being
intentionally harmful, there's not much we can do about it, is there?
Or is there? Because while we certainly
cannot change the directions other people choose to take in life, we
can change ours. And sometimes our journey toward sainthood, so to
speak, may just show us ways to make a difference in the lives of
others without direct interference or judgment.
And we make sacrifices, especially for
those we love, don't we? I mean, I guess that makes us saints of a
sort. Sometimes we take up the slack when their burdens get too
heavy, even if they brought those burdens upon themselves. I guess
that's because we realize and remember the times when we stumbled and
that we are no better.
Just because we're in a better place,
now, well, that doesn't mean we always have been or always will be.
Everyone makes mistakes, after all. Our mistakes may have already
happened or be destined to arrive any day. That's the beauty of this
crazy life. It's so unpredictable.
I guess that about all I have to say,
except that here's my idea of perfect. You try. You dig in. You do
what is in your power to do. You practice compassion, kindness and
acceptance as much as possible. You live life on your own terms and
stay true to yourself. You let others do the same. And you try not to
be so quick to pass judgment on others, or even on yourself, for that
matter.
None of us are perfect. And hard as we
might try, none of us are saints. In fact, I'm pretty sure those who
have been declared saints have made their share of mistakes as well.
I'm also sure there are “bad” people who have done good from time
to time. Don't you think?
Sainthood? I'll never get there. But I
can try to be a good person. I can try to help people. I can try to
be kind and compassionate. And if I'm lucky, maybe some folks will
return the favor. But even if they don't, I'll know I did (or tried
to do) what I feel is right. That's good enough for me.
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