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Where are we headed
By Felix | April 22, 2008
The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings, but shorter tempers; wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints; we spend more, but have less; we buy more but enjoy it less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families; more conveniences, but less time; we have more degrees, but less sense; more knowledge, but less judgement; more experts, but more problems; more medicine, but less wellness.
We drink too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry too quickly, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often. We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life; We’ve added years to life, not life to years.
We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet the new neighbor. We’ve conquered outer space, but not inner space; We’ve done larger things, but not better things.
We’ve cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul; we’ve split the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less; we plan more, but accomplish less.
We’ve learned to rush, but not to wait; we have higher incomes, but, lower morals.
We build more computers to hold more information to produce more copies than ever, but have less communication; We’ve become long on quantity, but short on quality.
These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce; of fancier houses, but broken homes.
These are the days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throw away morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. Where are we heading …?
Some of you that know me will be shocked at this post, and that’s because I have always been boned headed regarding the topic of spending time with loved ones, I have always put work first and with my main excuse being work hard now, so you can retire young and enjoy it later, but I have come to look at the world around me, I don’t see Aliko Dangote( Richest Man In Africa) or Bill Gates (Former richest man in the world, held the record for over ten years) retiring anytime soon, I have come to see that the more we acquire, the more our hunger grows. We have somehow with time been wired to be insatiable and this keeps us gunning for more, sometimes denying the ones we love of the most precious thing we have … TIME! This is one thing we have not been able to replicate… yet, yeah, I put yet there, because I can’t tell what the future holds… lol.
I was down yesterday and couldn’t make it to work and my situation got me thinking… what if something went wrong and I go “caput’, really all the time I have spent working and trying to acquire wealth without spending quality time with my family and loved ones will it be worth it?
Don’t get me wrong, I haven’t gone lazy overnight and my ever strong drive to pursue and achieve my goals have not fizzled out overnight, instead, I have decided to try and balance it out in such a way that I create quality time for family and loved ones while still striving to achieve my goals.
If the story I shared at the beginning is not enough to drive this point through, maybe we can learn from the one below.
A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door.
SON: “Daddy, may I ask you a question?”
DAD: “Yeah sure, what is it?” replied the man.
SON: “Daddy, how much do you make an hour?”
DAD: “That’s none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?”the man said angrily.
SON: “I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?”
DAD: “If you must know, I make $100 an hour.”
SON: “Oh,” the little boy replied, with his head down.
SON: “Daddy, may I please borrow $.50?”
The father was furious, “If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I work hard every day for such this childish behavior.”
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door. The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy’s questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money? After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think: Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $50 and he really didn’t ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy’s room and opened the door.”Are you asleep, son?” He asked.”No daddy, I’m awake,” replied the boy.”I’ve been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier” said the man.”It’s been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you.. Here’s the $50 you asked for.”
The little boy sat straight up, smiling. “Oh, thank you daddy!” He yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills. The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.”Why do you want more money if you already have some?” the father grumbled.”Because I didn’t have enough, but now I do,” the little boy replied.”Daddy, I have $100 now. Can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have dinner with you.”The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness.
If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days. But the family we left behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.
And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than to our family an unwise investment indeed.
So what is the morale of the story????
Don’t work too hard… and you know what’s the full word of family is?
FAMILY = (F)ATHER (A)ND (M)OTHER, (I) (L)OVE (Y)OU
Topics: change, family, time |
April 22nd, 2008 at 9:01 pm
THANK YOU !!! ..i will forever hold u close to my heart, and im glad u have had a light bulb moment, i have missed chatting with you and seems here is the only place i can get your attention at times as most in your life. I pray that God shows u that balance u need and continue to help u understand that life is short and there are no guarintee that tomorrow will come, this earth can only provide one with temporary highs and when that high is over u search for another n another and so on, dont build your heaven here on earth cuz in the end that is all u will have, I love u plenty Felix and know you are a man of God keep listening to the spirit of truth in your chest it will never lie to you ever.. but the human brain will forever lust for what this earth can provide
feel that spirit in your chest and u will never go wrong, xxx wink.. xxx latta sweets luvu ..hope u are feeling bettaaaaaaa xx
April 23rd, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Felix this is 1 of best post u ve written ,i totally agree with u ,it always good to make do of what today will bring bcos we don’t no what morrow holds for us, bcos morrow is pregnant and nobody know what it will give birth 2, i ve always had this idea about life that we should always be happy and spend quality time with our family or loved one’s, they’re all we ve got, they are always there to share our sad or happy moments , no matter what happens our family will always be there for us.
THEY ARE OUR SUNSHINE AT THE DARK HOUR.
April 23rd, 2008 at 12:57 pm
A good lesson we must all stick to!as humans we tend to forget that not all battles are meant to be won alone for we need the support and love of our dear ones.(Those are the ones we need to show appreciation 4;now,while we still can.they are irreplaceable!when they’re gone you’ll Some realise that.some of the things you’re upset over now will seem insignificant then.
SO squeeze the most out of every moment.Creat memories you’ill treasure.
P.S
Hope ur getting beta now?by d way glad u thot of an article as captivating as such;thot of u just yesterday n i vowed to ring you up n spit fire into ur ears!!concerning how choked up uve become wif work n failing to bi intouch of late wif ur way way back crew..nonetheless i gat ya back as always.
TAKE CHARGE SWITS..SHONUFF
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:11 pm
Fantastic write up!!! We all should know that this life is a short one and only our loved ones will always be there for us whenever. Love is hard to find and easy to lose. You hit the nail on the head. Way to go…
April 24th, 2008 at 6:17 am
@Shola, werent we just talking about this very subject.. how crazy huh.. lol
April 24th, 2008 at 8:27 am
@Debra, the Spirit of God is the same everywhere
April 24th, 2008 at 12:35 pm
Now i know why my brother gave me a call yesterday and today. I was surprised when he called me, now i know. FELIX. Am relly glad you have realised, we need you and wouldnt want to have to pay for your time. This makes me really glad. LOVE YOU.
April 25th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
wow…….you got me thinking…… family. I hav to cal my mom now.
April 27th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
Thanks man,some of us will really have to rearrange our schedules to factor in our families,thanks again for the reminder.
May 17th, 2008 at 9:26 am
Nice one…I just read this post yesterday…Good to know you know this truth.
A total Man’s priority is as follows
1. God
2. Family
3. His Nation
4. His Work/Job/Business
5. His environment
6. His Neigbour
7. Himself…