Hey Guys,
The following is a short essay I wrote on inconvenience, expectations, and hopefully another positive outlook on the overstimulation of election posts (but not in cringey way)(maybe a little bit cringey, but just let me have my moment). If by chance it resonates with you and you want to show your mom, your overly political neighbor, or that second cousin you got in a argument on Facebook with last week, here’s your opportunity.
I promise it’s not a very political post….I’m just trying to be funny and relatable
A few weeks ago I started one of my days off with an early morning walk. I made myself a cup of coffee, bundled up, and hit the neighborhood roads with no cell phone, no plan, and no real thought of responsibility.
The walk itself was glorious.
There's something about a morning walk that sparks creativity like nothing else. The process of being untouched by distraction and the freedom of being able to go wherever you want to go. The freedom of letting your thought wander to wherever it wants is totally refreshing and seemingly untouchable throughout the rest of your day.
On this particular morning, I was able to mentally map out an outline for an article I was writing for my blog. When I got home, I came inside and knocked out the entire first draft while I finished my cup of coffee. I then closed my personal work and spent the afternoon completing assignments for school and was able to spend the evening with my wife.
It was the perfect day.
It's no surprise then that the next time I was able to approach a morning with the same kind of freedom, I wanted to recreate that experience right down to the tee.
Spoiler alert: it did not work out that well.
This morning I overslept, dragging myself out of bed at a shameful 10:00am opposed to the previous day’s walk of 7:00am. I made myself a cup of coffee and bundled up, preparing for the cold morning air to give me the jump start I had been craving. My first step out the door, though, led me to find that it was a whopping 60 degrees outside. Now I'm not sure where you're reading this from but here in Buffalo, that's perfect beach weather. No gusts of cold air were in store for me...
I carried on my walk waiting for the inspiration I had experienced last time to hit but it never did. And as pleasant as the exercise and time spent outside was, I couldn't help but acknowledge the mask of expectation that I had placed on my morning. Looking for something to get me going,I took the first sip of my coffee - the consistent encouragement I seem to always be able to turn to in life. And I'm not sure why...but it tasted like dish soap.
I cut my losses, dumped my coffee, and made my way home. I had been burned by an expectation for a recipe like formula for fulfillment. Walk + Cold + Coffee = Success. The moment one of those attributes went awry, I lost sight of the potential of my day because I only saw the expectation I had for my day circling the drain.
Life throws a lot of curveballs at you. If you get your heart set on the way you think things ought to be instead of the way things actually are, you're going to spend the majority of your time distraught. I'm not saying the answer is to be some kind of crunchy, "go with the flow," granola hippie. But if you acknowledge the reality of your situation AND THEN seek the best path to improvement, you're going to find yourself in a lot better shape mentally than if you spend all your time and effort trying to get your stars to align.
I couldn't help but also draw the parallel to the situation of my country politically as well. No matter who you are or who you voted for - chances are there's a lot in our current and future governments plans that may not seem ideal to you. A lot of people have confronted this inner conflict with anger, frustration, and in some cases, violence. Increasingly we are seeing people refuse to accept the reality of the situation.
When I got home from my walk today I felt unmotivated, disappointed, and bitter about my coffee. But I sat down, wrote this essay, and did my school for the remainder of the afternoon.
It ended up being a pretty decent day!
I knew there was nothing I could do about my failed walk so I had to acknowledge my losses where they were and look to the future.
I know my example is miniscule in scale to the massive division and toll that this past election has had on my country and its people. But I think we could all benefit from a reminder that we simply are where we are. Cut your wins/losses where they stand, accept the reality of our situation, and look towards the future! We need to continue to seek new ways to improve our country from the state it is in now, not from where we’ve been or where we believe we’re going. Letting our expectations hinder our activity would be a disservice to both ourselves and our country. We need to be constantly seeking out ways of improvement!
Thanks for hanging in all the way to the end (unless you just scrolled down until you found a new section…In that case…Me too).
Maybe you noticed the shiny new banner at the top of the newsletter. I’m starting to develop a rebrand (or depending on how you view it, im developing a brand? Not sure…). Either way, I’m redesigning my website and whipping up new content to post as soon as it’s done. In the meantime I’m back to the ‘ole Substack and plan on being far more consistent with posts and ideas through my newsletter
Here's a quick preview of what’s in store. Making a move toward “niche” writing has been something I never wanted to do but here we are. I have some key pillars set, now it’s time to fill them up.
I want to let you guys know that i'm still figuring this thing out. I'm growing right along side the structure of this newsletter and learning more about it, and myself with every issue that I publish. With every issue so far, the structure and format has looked a little bit farther from what I intended originally but that’s okay with me. I started this project not having a clue what I was doing, but it sounded fun.
I still don't know what I'm doing but I do know that consistency coupled with change usually means that improvement is on the horizon. I'm going to keep plugging away at my usual pace and see where it takes me. If there's anything that stands out to you about what I've written so far in the past couple weeks (things that were super boring, things that you would like to hear me write more about) please let me know! I love to hear about how my stories relate (and don't relate) to other people.