Meaning in Life

Strawberry's latest post asks how to "find the meaningful" in life. It's a good question, really. How do you find things that are meaningful, and how do you get motivated to DO them?

Sometimes "The Meaningful" just whacks you between the eyes. Sometimes it's incredibly obvious, and you can't help but do whatever it may be, because you're almost compelled to do so. For me, that's things like playing the organ for church. I have to play - at least on occasion. Heck, just going to service on Sundays is The Meaningful. And I do really miss it if I don't go in a particular week. And I'm sure that, if you asked her, Strawberry would tell you that teaching Sunday School is part of The Obvious Meaningful to her.

But sometimes The Meaningful doesn't present itself with a 2x4. Sometimes, making yourself go out and doing something becomes meaningful in retrospect. I don't mean just things that are "hafta do" things, like laundry and cleaning - I mean things like "go for a walk in the park" or "sit outside with a coffee (or tea) and just listen to the birds" becomes meaningful. Those are ways that Captain Spaulding and I use to "center" ourselves, and take a couple minutes out to remind ourselves that life isn't just about doing the things we MUST do every day. Life isn't just sleep-eat-work-sleep; it's the little stuff.

Likewise, Meaningful isn't always the Big Important Feelings and motivations. Many times I've had to force myself out of my chair, out of the house, to go do something that I really don't feel like doing. I don't feel motivated, I don't feel ambitious, and I sure as heck don't want to do anything except go back to bed. But I get up and do it, because either I've promised someone else I'll be there, or go do "it" (whatever it is), or because I'm just tired of being in my rut of sleep-eat-work-sleep. I certainly don't feel like whatever I'm going to do is meaningful. But later on, maybe while I'm doing whatever it is, or afterward, I look and see that yes, it was meaningful, and I feel better about myself for having done it. Even if it's just walking the dog around the block, or hiking in the woods, or...hey, even hanging laundry to dry.

The Meaningful is all around us. Sometimes it's obvious. Sometimes it's very, very hard to see. When it becomes nigh unto impossible to find, it's up to each of us to MAKE The Meaningful happen, rather than wait for it to find us. And, like many other things, the more Meaningful we "do", the easier it is to find it next time.