Monday quote:

The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths offered by the present, but a place that is created – created first in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating. The paths are not to be found, but made, and the activity of making them, changes both the maker and the destination.”
~ Deborah James

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This is a powerful viewpoint.

Understanding that we are creating our own future – moment by moment, step by step, with everything that we do, means that we have power over that future. We have the power to mold it and shape it.   How it turns out will be a result of our own thoughts and actions.  How powerful is that? 

What are you creating?

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If you’ve got a lump of clay, what will you make with it? A fruit bowl? Sculpture? Ashtray? The possibilities are endless, just as they are with creating our own lives. Whatever you decide, you are creating something – first in the mind, then in reality. Even if your decision is to leave the lump of clay sitting there untouched until it dries and cracks — well, that’s creating something too.

Of course there are always things that happen that are outside our control, both good and bad.  Whether it’s a chance encounter, or a car accident, or a company layoff, or winning the lottery – these things come into our lives, and we have to determine what to do with them.  We can’t control the fact that they happened.  But we can control our response – how we view them, and what we choose to do with them.  It’s hard to see the opportunity, or silver lining, in everything that happens in our lives, though some people are remarkably adept at it.

The ingredients await

Imagine a chef competition.  You’re given certain ingredients, and tools, and constraints, and then it’s up to you to decide what you’re going to make with it.  Maybe you’d rather have lobster, but you got okra. Are you going to make Fried okra? Pickled okra? Bayou gumbo?  How about Spicy african-style okra?  Even with okra, you’ve got endless options.

You start with the situation and assets you’ve got. Then apply imagination to see the possibilities, then some thought to figure out the details, then the actions to make the final product. It all applies in life just as it does in cooking.

So think about your own life — right now, where you are, doing what you’re doing.  This is the “future” you created in the past, with all the materials you’ve been given so far.  Is it what you thought you were building?  What you wanted to make?

Now where do you want to go from here?

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One thing I’ve been creating recently is our new Women’s Travel Store.  People always ask us about what they should take on their trips.  Now we’re going to make it easier than ever to get just the right travel clothing and travel accessories that you need.
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The author received no contribution from the Okra Marketing Board, and this post is not an endorsement for any particular okra recipe, especially pickled okra.
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