Simpleness

Is it, now?

We spend hours of our day dedicating thoughts, fears, panic and urgency to things that when put in to perspective actually mean very little.

A man I have admired for some time, The Barefoot Doctor wrote a book entitled ‘Manifesto’, and I would like to quote from the first few golden pages if I may:

“But I tell you what, if you reckon on the fact that you’re going to die anyway one day, and you never know exactly when that will be until it happens, and you figure from that that you’ve got nothing to lose and in fact everything in the entire word to gain, then with the data you access from reading this [book], you will, in no time, find yourself having a ball, baby, you’ll find yourself having an absolute ball.”

Putting aside the fact that paragraph was all one sentence, there is a point of perfection to it. The idea that if your life as you know it will cease to be at some unknown point in the future, you have nothing to lose. Because it will all feck off and go whatever pills you take.

This phrase fills me with freedom and opportunity. And in fact quashes my worries. Why the hell am I worrying that the ironing isn’t done? How, pray tell, is that going to end the World?

My advice is this:

1. Organise your worries in to “World ending” and “Superficial” categories.
2. Address the disaterous category first, and treat the other as “when I have time”.
3. Dont apologise for this, or see yourself as acting selfish in any way. Yes, it will make Sandra smile if that report she is barking for is in first thing Monday, but it also won’t end her World if it isn’t. Or yours. If you don’t get round to it, it can’t have been in your first category.