You have a choice in life...

Contributors offers insight into the non-physical side of the Martial Arts, often ignored when discussing self-defense.
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gmattson
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You have a choice in life...

Post by gmattson »

Sent to me by a VFW buddy. . . Thought it was something we should all read and. . .

LET IT REALLY SINK IN.

John is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood and always has something positive to say. When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, "If I were any better, I would be twins!"

He was a natural motivator.

If an employee was having a bad day, John was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.

Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up and asked him, "I don't get it!

You can't be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?"

He replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.

I choose to be in a good mood."

Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or...I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it.

Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or... I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life.

"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.

"Yes, it is," he said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people affect your mood.

You choose to be in a good mood or bad mood. The bottom line: It's your choice how you live your life."

I reflected on what he said. Soon hereafter, I left the Tower Industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.

Several years later, I heard that he was involved in a serious accident, falling some 60 feet from a communications tower.

After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, he was released from the hospital with rods placed in his back.

I saw him about six months after the accident.

When I asked him how he was, he replied, "If I were any better, I'd be twins Wanna see my scars?"

I declined to see his wounds, but I did ask him what had gone through his mind as the accident took place.

"The first thing that went through my mind was the well-being of my soon-to-be born daughter," he replied. "Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live or...I could choose to die. I chose to live."

"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked.

He continued, "..the paramedics were great.

They kept telling me I was going to be fine.But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their eyes, I read 'he's a dead man'. I knew I needed to take action."

"What did you do?" I asked.

"Well, there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me," said John. "She asked if I was allergic to anything. 'Yes, I replied.' The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and yelled, 'Gravity'."

Over their laughter, I told them, "I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead."

He lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude... I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.

Attitude, after all, is everything.

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

After all today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.
GEM
"Do or do not. there is no try!"
cdoucet
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Post by cdoucet »

"Yes, it is," he said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away all the junk, every situation is a choice. You choose how you react to situations. You choose how people affect your mood.
I was told this about 5 years ago in a customer service department. Haven't forgotten it since.

The will to live is a very strong thought! IMHO. its important to have that mindset going into something like that. I believe if the mindset is that when going into and operation then the mind will send messages to the body and "fight" to to live.

Chris
Diremind

Post by Diremind »

Very inspiring. Makes one want to really try and emulate that. Has anyone read way of the samurai or any other translations of the bushido code? The reason I ask is that they make it very clear that many problems arise from not accepting that death could come any moment. That there is only today and tomorrow might not be there. I think John is a great example of putting this principle into practice. Just a thought.

-Ross
maxwell ainley
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Post by maxwell ainley »

It is inspiring ,and it might even be the start of a way ,as well as footsteps along the way for some .
A major key to things human is understanding ,we can live more enriched via understanding and making the right choice ,which could lead to a lasting way ,instead of passing ways
max ainley
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Angela
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You have a choice in life...

Post by Angela »

Ability is what you're capable of doing.
Motivation determines what you do.
Attitude determines how well you do it."
..
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