Perhaps I have always been a dreamer. I have always been on the look out for every opportunity that was of interest to me, and experiencing what I can within the scope of my personal values. My father once asked me, "Why do you study, travel and work so much?" Basically he did not have anything against these things, but it was the magnitude in which I pursued these activities. He thought it strange that I did not pursue the "safe and secure jobs" and buy the house that I would live in for thirty years.
I admired my father. He was a responsible man, a loyal veteran, and a man who stayed in his job for more than thirty years. He retired and then worked some more. As it is true of most young people, I am the one that took the opposite road. I told my dad I wanted to experience life fully. He did not say much, just nodded his head, with a slight smile, in the way he always did when he did not necessarily fully agree, but was going to respect the path that I chose.
Needless to say, as I continued my journey of "Experiencing Life", I discovered many things. For one thing life is a phenomenon within itself. I noticed that life sometimes has a script of its own. I also discovered that many of our pursuits sometimes lead you to similar experiences. Life has a way of bringing you back, full circle.
There were things that I looked for in different places, people, and careers. I learned that the elements that I was seeking, were not in those pursuits, but within me. In other words, like the old adage: "it was in my own backyard." Perhaps that was what my father saw in me. Although ambition is good, there was a missing element, and he wanted me to look within myself and get in touch with what I felt was missing.
B.L. Aki, B.S., M.A. Life Coach
"Now godliness with contentment is great gain" 1 Timothy 6:6
