A New Day

You know something needs to change in your life, but where do you begin?  Start right where you stand.  You cannot start where you want to be, for that is only in your imagination.  Look around and see what needs to be done and begin.  It has been said that a thousand-mile journey begins with the first step.  If there is a piece of paper at your feet, pick it up.  Do you see that stack of clothes on the dresser?  Put them away and organize your room.  Whatever it is that needs to be done in your environment that will help you to make progress on that thousand-mile journey, do it today.  Who knows, tomorrow you may only have 998 miles left to go.  Take a mental picture of what it will look like when you reach your desired destination and smile.  As you are moving along day by day, revisit that picture and smile again, but don’t stare into the future too long.

Each day you begin you will have two forces pulling on you.  Your past pulls you, either to regrets over failures, or pride over successes.  Your future will pull you to daydreaming and speculations.  Either of these forces can paralyze you and cause you to remain right where you stand.  You will need some things from your past, and you will need the picture of your future, but don’t fall into the trap of trying to carry the weight of either one.  You must plan your way to your future, and then you must complete part of the plan today.  If not, today will be a wasted day when it comes to accomplishing your goals.  You may turn around in circles today, and speak to many people along the way, but at the end of the day that piece of paper is still at your feet and the stack of clothes is still on the dresser. 

Sometimes we get stuck with our feet in the mud because we do not know where we want to go, who we want to be, or what we need to do to get there.  Sometimes our fear of the journey and what we must face along the way makes us sit down in fatigue, as if we were already worn out by the journey.  Well, speak to yourself, unclutter your mind, and take off that heavy jacket filled with baggage your brought from your past.  Pull both feet out of the mud, take a shower, and let’s get started.   As radio announcer used to say each morning, “today is a brand-new day, fresh, clean, and unused.”  Let’s use today wisely and well.  With just a little discipline, today we will be successful in moving towards our goals.