Don't be dissapointed...

“There are two disappointments in life.  One is not getting what you want.  The other is getting it.”  (Oscar Wilde) from my favorite source, the Jack’s Winning Words blog.

I was drawn to this quote that Jack used recently by the amazingly simple complexity of it. We are as human beings always striving for something. At the most basic and primitive level that is the struggle to survive; however, few of us are at that level or even give that much thought. Most of us have aspirations – things that we want or want to achieve in life. The things on that list constantly change or evolve, depending somewhat on our stage in life and whether or not we have learned anything from the journey to that stage.  I think that the way that one can avoid being disappointed by getting what you want is to want the right things.   

One of the things that my personal life journey has taught me is that the material things on my list have proven to be for the most part disappointing or less fulfilling once achieved than I had at one time imagined.  Things or possessions have less and less meaning to me as I enter the autumn of my life. Make no mistake, there are things that I have that make life much easier – a home, cars , clothing, etc. But I note that having the biggest and best McMansion or the flashiest car or many other things that I once considered worthwhile to strive for now mean much less to me than having friends and family close by and being able to do things with and for others.

Relationships are seldom mentioned on people’s “bucket list”, but perhaps they should be at the top of the list. Having lots of things without anyone to share them with makes them meaningless. Holding great wealth tightly against one’s breast is not as satisfying as hugging a grandchild who just got his first hit in Little League baseball.

So, I’ve finally realized and started focusing upon the things in life that have real meaning – the people around me – family and friends. If you make what you want to be meaningful and loving relationships with loved ones, I can’t see how you can be disappointed by getting what you want. You’ll end feeling like the richest person in the room.

So take a look at your list of things that you want. If you got everything on the list today, do you think you’d be happy or disappointed? Maybe it’s time to re-write your list.