I used to work in tech, where I played an integral role in our organization’s data architecture. Basically, designing how data is collected, stored, and organized in a meaningful and easily accessible way.
The greatest challenge we always faced was protecting our data’s integrity. How to protect our data from system errors. And most especially user errors. How to protect our systems from taking in “garbage” and subsequently producing more “garbage”.
It was a tall order.
And also, an apt metaphor for much of life as a thinking, breathing human: “Garbage in, garbage out.”
“I am what I eat.”
“I am what I think you think I am.”
I have been thinking about perspective a lot. I even blogged about it not too long ago.
Maybe because life has been coming hard at me these last few years, I have been employing every survival instinct I have:
…from the most basic — Has everyone been fed?
…to the most strategic — How can I frame this for myself so that it doesn’t hurt/ suck/ look as bad as it hurts/ sucks/ looks?
The latter, especially, I have taken some time to ruminate. Always, when facing a challenging situation, I check the other side of the coin: How else can I look at this? What’s the silver lining?
I like that movie title, “Silver Linings Playbook”. I feel like I should write one for myself.
Perhaps this is what this blog can be for me. For you.
Maybe we need to remind each other of the importance of perspective.
Of optimism.
Of not taking oneself so darn seriously.
Maybe it is as simple as being mindful of the things we say to ourselves. Of discerning lie vs truth. Of quieting the criticisms we murmur to ourselves at the end of the day.
Resisting garbage in, garbage out. Getting out of the vicious cycle of being a garbage producer because life gives us garbage.
Maybe it is sorting through and throwing out the garbage and filling ourselves with something else:
Inspiration.
Faith.
Patience.
Compassion.
Grace.
By doing so, perhaps we can build ourselves up, even as the battering ram of life’s difficulties threatens to crush us. To not just have a sturdy foundation of resilience, but also a well deep enough for joy and generosity. And peace.
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