Saturday, August 06, 2011

Are You Better?



It's said when you know better you do better. What if you know better, but because of "situations" you keep doing the same thing? I say an excuse isn't a reason for anything but failure. Can it be that sometimes in life an excuse is the only reason you have?

If you keep doing things the same way you keep getting the same results. Do you get the same results if you do them in different situations or with different people? It didn't work once or twice so you know better right? Maybe...but the third time is the charm. Ahhh, failure makes you continue to try. The question is when do you decide you know better? When do you try to do it differently?

Something as simple as crossing the street made me think about how I can do better. A few weeks ago I saw a story about a mother who faced jailtime because her son was killed while they crossed the street. Instead of crossing at the crosswalk they jaywalked. You can read the entire story here - Raquel Nelson Two days later I had to cross the street with my daughter. Did I go to the crosswalk? No. I crossed at the middle of the street seeing the building I wanted to enter was right there. I knew better but didn't do better. Excuse? Explanation? Failure on my part?

Parents who stand on the curb with their child in the stroller in the street. Will that make you cross the street faster or make your child get hit sooner as the car speeding down the street tries to beat the light, or swerves, or has a tire blowout or you fill in the blank__________.

Looking down the train tracks to see if the train is coming. Does that make you get to your destination faster? What if you fall on the tracks? Where does that get you? Leaving your kids in the car while you just, "Run in to get one thing." What if another car hits yours? Maybe someone will decide at that moment to steal your car. How about, "Oh we're only going around the block, so you don't need your seatbelt." Did you ever consider the other car that's coming in the oposite direction around the same block that's speeding and not paying attention to anything else?

How many times have you known better, but continued to do the same old thing anyway? Check your actions, relationships and behaviour. How many times has a mistake made by someone else given you one more chance to do better? The death of a child usually makes us pay attention, but for how long?

Am I judging the mother who had to go through this ordeal? No. My heart hurts for her. She lost her child trying to do better. She wanted to get her family home as quickly as possible. I wonder though if you fail when you try to better yourself do you give up and stay in your rut? I don't but the opportunity to repeat the action has happened many times.

Think about how many times you've said this is the last time that I'll ever blah, blah, blah. One time it just might be your last time. Evaluate you and ask Are You Better? Go deep with it; your answer will surprise you.

I luv you.

1 comment:

Tracy said...

I truly believe that it doesn't matter what decision you make when it is your time to die, or whatever awaits your destiny is going to happen. The mother could have crossed at the crosswalk and her child still met the same fate. Just like the person who decides not to take a flight because it is delayed due to engine problems, but dies in a car accident returning home. It was their fate. Sometimes the real lesson is not in the obvious. The real lesson could be in that the country was in an uproar over the Casey Anthony verdict, but showed little concern that this mother was sentenced to jail time.