I’ve written a bit about the School of Hard Knocks based on the book by Ralph Parlette. That’s the only book review I’ve ever written. I’ll link it below. I’m not ready to distract you away from this post just yet. 😉
That book was and is profound to me.
It’s my recent education in the School of What Really Matters that is shaping my life view now.
Maybe it’s my age…I’m 40-way more than I want to talk about-7. Every birthday is a new and impending doom. 😆
Maybe it’s my upbringing. I spent the first 27 years of my life very involved in my church.
Maybe it’s been watching my parents grow old and my mother’s passing…yes, definitely this.
Maybe it’s the constant changes in life.
It’s all of the above.
Solomon, the King of Israel between 970 and 931 BCE wrote in his book, Ecclesiastes, how “all is vanity and striving for the wind.”
The School of What Really Matters has left me contemplating everything. It’s half conviction and half mid-life crisis.
When my mother was in Hospice care, I had my father still to lean on. Now that my father is headed into Hospice care, I don’t have that extra buffer and I feel it with every ounce of my being.
What really matters is that I’ve had God to speak with regarding my many stresses and outright panic.
When I consider current events and the state of our world, I’m overwhelmed. “Pray without ceasing” is a real thing! It’s needed in every situation on all fronts by everyone, myself included.
What really matters is making time to pray and understanding that prayer, regardless of your beliefs is someone else taking their time to make requests on your behalf.
When I can’t focus for more than 2 nanoseconds on any one thought, thanks ADHD.
What really matters is understanding your superpower.
When your inner dialogue is poison, but crippling anxiety and depression aren’t something you can afford to coddle.
What really matters is survival and managing to function against the odds.
When I’ve wasted countless hours on a binge rewatch of some idiotic reality show, and the guilt creeps in.
What really matters is enriching my heart, soul, and mind. Garbage in; garbage out.
I could go on, but this is my education the School of What Really Matters. Yours will be completely different.
Sure, you may learn some of the same lessons, but you will be educated in a way that is most meaningful to you.
I’d like to know some things that really matter to you. Will you leave them for me in the comments below?
Here’s that book review in case you wanted to see Ralph’s book is all about.
https://candidcashflow.com/university-of-hard-knocks-book-review/