Success is subjective. It is different for everyone.
What is your definition? To some it is creating a multi-million dollar
business. To others it is a fulfilling career as a respected teacher. Usually
it is a combination of things—health, happiness, material prosperity, love of
family and friends, wisdom, influence, and fulfillment of goals. And to still others
it is simply, am I leaving this world a better place? Some people think success
is providing for their family and imparting a legacy of love and integrity that
their parents gave to them. Shared happiness is a form of success. And feeling
comfortable and right in your own skin brings peace of mind which is a kind of
success.
There are many definitions but my favorite one, and
the one I have made my own, is Ralph Waldo Emerson’s definition of success: “To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent
people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest
critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends. To appreciate beauty; to
find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy
child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that even one
life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” I am still working on it. How about you?
My lifelong dream is to own a farm. On the farm would be a spring providing crystal clear, nearly mineral free water. I would grow barley and hops and capture yeast spores.
ReplyDeleteI would never know hunger or thirst, and I would live to be 200 years old in my partially embalmed body.
Hey, it's a living.
TsarPat
And I would visit the beer farmer very often! Martin Luther King's dream was not as noble but then, he did not get his dream either.
ReplyDelete