If only I had more qualifications
I would be earning my dream pay
If only I had more experience
I would be at peak performance
If only I had more resources
I would live better, give more
If only I was healthier, stronger
I would be a high flying achiever
If only I was slimmer, taller, prettier
I would sure be more courageous
If only I was like him or more like her
I would be loved and appreciated better
If only I had more supporters, no critiques
I would dare to accomplish the impossible
O I could be and would be anything if only….
Oftentimes, we are so carried away by our goals and targets, reaching for more, the best, to the point that what we have appears not enough. This attitude does not stay limited to just one part of our life. It spreads and breeds lack of contentment and sensitivity to others who are lacking and wanting what we have but don’t appreciate for want of more. It is a consuming attitude that leaves one always reaching and hardly appreciating. We keep wishing we had a little more. Then we get that little more and we want some more. If we don’t watch it, a lifetime could pass us by, wanting and reaching, always for more and never content with what we have or where we are per time.
While it does not help to pretend that we are what we are not, truth remains that we do not need heaven and earth to live our dreams. What we need is wisdom to accept who and where we are, and willingness to walk contentment as we work toward what we hope for. Fortitude to continue to believe and contend with what we have and not give up before we get there. It doesn’t matter at what age or level you find yourself, this is the lot of all of us: we all have that desire that is yet to come, that dream that appears to be fizzling as the year draws to an end. And whether it lives or dies depends on what we do, not with what we don’t have but with what we have where we find ourselves every day we live.
Where you are today and what you have right now may not be much but we miss out because we despise days of little beginning, ignorant that they set solid foundations for greater endings. Despite age differences, it is never too late to live or believe. We are never too old to hope or to live our dream so long as we are willing to pay the price the best we can. When we have truly exhausted what we have today, tomorrow will always bring enough for us to keep adding and building toward its accomplishment. It may not happen in a day but it will, one day at a time.
Like my dad would say, “A fertile ground won’t wait for a basket of seeds: one seed is enough to start with because it is not just about what you have, it is about what you do with what you have.” May God’s wisdom guide us to take our eyes off of what could have been and teach us to make the most of every gift and every opportunity that comes our way. May it rid us of unprofitable regrets and launch us into attitudes and habits of gratitude. Amen!
Blessings.
Glory!