22 June 2016

“A greater poverty than that caused by lack of money is the poverty of unawareness. Men and women go about the world unaware of the beauty, the goodness, the glories in it. ”               Thomas Dreier

What pictures do you save to look at later? The negative images from the news or the happy pictures of family events and happy times? Are you more likely to save pictures of funerals or of weddings? Very few of us have a portfolio filled with negative pictures, probably because those videos or pictures are short term. The pictures of the good things are more long term. The same is true of what happens in life, negative things are often crises that we overcome in the short term, but what really matters is the positive nature of life in the long term.

Being unaware of the positive things in life can drag a person down. If a person spends all of their time dealing with short term crises, it is harder to see the positive things that permeate everyday life. It is a cliche, but do you “stop to smell the roses.” One moment to remind ourselves of the beauty of the world can make a big difference in our day. As you eat, be thankful that you have food to eat. As you come in the door of your house, be grateful that you have a house to live in. When you get a hug from your friend or family member, relish the love you feel.

It is this undercurrent of the good in life that makes it so that the human race is evolving in a very positive way. By seeing the good we, as a human race, cultivate goodness in the larger society and help us all to evolve in a positive way.