Do you believe you’re an active force in your life, or do you believe life acts through you and you really have no say in the matter? Have you ever been in a situation you didn’t like, and you made an effort, maybe took a risk, to change your circumstances? Some people would say “you” didn’t really do it, that it was preordained. Does it really matter?
All I can say is it makes me happy to think I have some choices. If that’s just a delusion, it still makes me happy.
June 29, 2014
I don’t believe. I know. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oo4OnQpwjkc
?
??
I think it’s both.
Life seeks flourishing (though this can be modified) and gives us the energy to choose.
Some things, however much we want them to, won’t help us flourish.
I think we usually have much more ability to influence our situation than we realise.
“I think we usually have much more ability to influence our situation than we realise.” It depends on the situation. With the economy the way it is in the U.S. it’s harder to find fulfilling jobs now, I think. And college grads usually have a heavy debt burden.
That said, even when the opportunities are there, taking them usually means we have to change ourselves. Most people don’t want to do that.
i sit here a bit smugly thinking i am or would be an active force.
but when i see refugees from these war torn countries…
simple ordinary people just like me…
who have had to run from bombs and brutalities i cannot even begin to comprehend…
and now they are in a life in limbo… forced upon them…
i do not think i am such an active force. i think i am merely lucky.
Yes, we are some of the luckiest creatures who ever walked the earth. It amazes me that more people don’t realize that. And that doesn’t mean we wouldn’t be foolish if we didn’t make a bit of effort and take advantage of our opportunities.
I believe that I’m an active force. I can’t necessarily affect what happens to me but I can control how I respond to it. That, I believe, is a big determinant of the path of a life.
Great question!
I couldn’t agree more!
Nor I. I’m an active force in my life.
I KNOW, not believe, that life acts through my body/mind/intellect/ego complex and I really have no say in the matter.