WISDOM FROM A BULL

Sitting Bull is one of my favorite philosophers. This particular statement is very profound. A good amount of people spend very little time thinking about the world past today. In this wake up, pay bills and die type culture, we are focused on how to get through the day. If we do spend time thinking about what is best for our future, we come to the realization that it is our actions today that affect our future. You want to retire? You have to begin saving today. You want to live a long and healthy life? It is the dietary and exercise choices we make today that will determine that.

How often do most people spend contemplating the generations to come? If you are a parent, you have a vested interest in how the world will turn out. Even then, life can get in the way. There are so many things to keep track of that thinking of how your actions will affect future generations might not be the first thing on your mind. Really, it should be. All of our actions affect the future because they affect the present. How you treat someone will affect how they treat others later in the day, and perhaps even further. throwing garbage on the street not only makes the world look terrible in the present, but can affect the water supply, animals may eat it or get tangled in it. Everything we do trickles down and affects everything else.

Starting this weekend, ask yourself how it will affect the future. Will it affect the attitude of the person who helps you at the coffee shop if you vent your anger on them? It may ruin their mood and they may treat the next customer poorly. That next customer will walk away with a negative attitude of the coffee shop or at the very least the person who served them. Will that piece of garbage you throw on the ground do damage to more than just the appearance of city? Conversely, if you compliment someone, how will that affect their day? If you pick up garbage on the ground, could you save an animal? Could you do more to positively affect the world for the next generation? Let us work together to create a better world for our children? Let us have a constructive conversation about this topic.