BLOG POST 19: Stand by what you choose
The inspiration for what I am writing right now comes from an interview given by Indian actress Neena Gupta. She is a brave lady who once got pregnant out of wedlock and decided to keep her baby. When the interviewer asks her if the most difficult choice she had to make in her life was, whether or not to keep the baby; she says, "the most difficult choice was to stand by the decision she had taken."
Visit this link to get a brief sketch of the interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QjUaLYQqI4
Plenty times, in life we arrive at the intersection of the list of many choices we have available. And we get to choose only one among them. Each one of us has our own strategies of analysing which ones among them work the best for us. We finally decide to choose one. But how do we know if we made the right choice? What if in the long run, we regret our decision? Can we turn back and redo it all from the start?
The funny fact is that, in life; many choices we make do not have a replay button. The channel you choose is what you've got to live with. The choice we make may be right or wrong.
Famous Writer and Life coach: Mary Morrissey says, "There are people who believe they can create their lives, a life that they truly love living, and then there are people who do not believe they can create their lives, the lives that they actually love living because they believe their circumstances dictate the life they should live."
People who believe they have the power to create their lives have a vision of what their life should look like. This vision helps them make the right choice. Someone who decides, 'Oh I want to be able to eat apple pies all my life and then I'll call my life a one hundred per cent truly lived one' will try to choose options that finally lead to the apple pie source.
The ability to stand by the choice we have made is one of the hardest ladders to climb. And, the one who does stick to their choice will have a surplus of beautiful stories to share. 'The road not taken' by Robert Frost is a beautiful poem that depicts the author's dilemma when he arrives at a road that forges into two. He decides to choose the road that is less travelled - the one in which leaves haven't been trampled enough. This poem tells us to dream and believe in ourselves in every choice we make.
If my vision is to reach the top of Mount Everest one day, then I should choose the road that leads to it. It might be the less chosen road by the common people. But if I have a dream of making it to that summit one day, then my vision will help me take the tiny steps towards it. Eventually, we will make it even if those steps are really tiny ones. Because gradually with those steps we gather the momentum we need to make it there.
Now, to take these steps, we need our mind to be prepared and ready for it. Even if we are lazy to take the step one day or think of procrastinating, our minds have to be trained to stop us from it. This is possible only if we truly have the dream. I want to be able to write a book one day. But if I postpone my journal writing and blogs for just a day, that means I don't have the drive towards reaching for my goal. Because if I earnestly wish to write a book, then my mind should not allow me to sit lethargically, keeping the practice of writing for another day.
This is exactly why many of us do not find the propel we need, to make it to certain targets. My friend may be extremely enthusiastic in her studies because her vision is to be able to treat patients who are in desperate need. For that, she needs to train herself to recollect information when and where it is needed. On the other side of the coin, another friend of mine may lag behind in her academics but do really well when it comes to performing. That's because her vision is to one day be able to perform at an event and be applauded by a huge audience.
We are all driven by different aspirations and hence each of us chooses different roads for ourselves. Every time you are at the junction compelled to choose among the many choices you get, choose the one you really want for yourself - not what the society or your family wants you to choose. Our decisions seem wrong only when someone else makes the choice for us. You have the power in your hands and hence select wisely. DO WHAT'S BEST FOR YOU!!!
And then remember to stand by what you choose NO MATTER WHAT...
