Although I didn’t finish everything on my To-Do list, I still find excuses to avoid doing some of the things on my list. However, I have gotten some of the things done.
I do find making a to-do list the night before and trying to start the new day by following the to-do list. I do feel better even though the accomplishment is small.
I still haven’t gotten back to my daily workout. However, I have been practicing qi-gong (a form of energy martial art practice) daily now. I write down how good I feel after I do it, which helps to motivate me to continue doing it the next day.
Today I spoke to a childhood friend whose 20-year-old son has been in the hospital in a human vegetative state due to a spreading brain tumor. It is devastating and difficult to accept. He is her only child. To her, he is her world. Now, he is dying. She felt her world was falling apart, and she told me her life was over and she had nothing left. I felt scared when she said that. I totally understand how she feels.
However, she has loving parents, a loving husband, many loving friends, and lives financially free. Her life was perfect before because she had everything. It is devastating what happened to her son.
According to the Daoist tradition, life has 9 palaces (aspects of life) that cause suffering including Health, Wealth, Prosperity, Relationships, Children/Creativity, Travel/Adventure, Career/Vacation, Wisdom, and Family.
Most human sufferings are due to attachments to one or more of these 9 life palaces. The attachments to any of these palaces create pain in our hearts. It is our life lesson to accept our reality, let go of these 9 palaces, and not let it bother you. Make the best out of life with what we have. In terms of my friend’s case, she is losing the children/creativity palace. She told me now her eyes are blind and her heart is dead, so she cannot see other palaces in her life. She could only see her son. I feel very sad. She is a very fortunate person because she is one of the very few people who still have all of the other 8 palaces. I wish she could see how fortunate she still is although it is devastating to lose her son.
There are many unfortunate people out there who may not have any of these palaces, but still, try their best to live happily and fulfill these palaces.
Life is unpredictable and can be very imperfect or even unfair to many people. None of us could answer why certain shitty things happen to us. When shit happens to us, we still have a choice, either we choose to focus on the lost part or focus on what we still have. It is something I try to remind myself as well to focus on what I have and be thankful for what I have.
Serene Living with Divine Love 