|
Look up from your navel every now and again to marvel at the beauty and glory of the universe
Tuesday, 20 February 2007
Let's face it, most of what we humans obsess over is pretty pathetic. The smallest insult can have us fuming for weeks, the tiniest inconvenience seems overwhelming, and our little problems fill our heads as if we were the most important person that was ever born.
Of course, this isn't all our fault. We've been thrown into this situation by fate. If we ignore the small practical problems that fill our lives, they'll soon have real consequences for us. We have little choice but to obsess over the petty and the mundane.
But occasionally, it's worthwhile lifting your head from the problems of the gutter to stare up at the stars. We spend so much time contemplating our own navels, that we can miss out on one of life's true pleasures - appreciating the beauty and glory of the universe.
Something I find really enjoyable is spending time outside on a clear night, looking up at the stars and just having a think. It astonishes me that every one of those stars is a sun, many much larger than our own. I wonder what's going on up there that we don't know about. Obviously we all think about alien life sometimes, but that's just the best our imaginations have come up with so far. One thing the history of science teaches us is that the real truth is usually far more astonishing than anything our own heads can produce.
The world outside ourselves can be cruel, but it can also be amazing. Just spend time looking at a tree, for example, and marvel at the incredible complexity contained in that one organism. The patterns of its leaves, designed to catch water and sun, the twists of its trunk, and the deep grip of its roots. You can walk past a hundred trees a day without noticing any of them. Yet, if you take the time to stare for a while, you can see just what an amazing thing a simple tree actually is.
Look back at the history of our planet and it's really remarkable. All the geological events, the forming of the atmosphere and what goes on beneath our feet. Consider all the different animals and plants that have called our planet home - always changing and adapting with the times. Think of the history of our own kind - from the cavepeople to today. What an amazing story it all is.
Of course your own problems are important to you and will take up the majority of your time, but that's not all there is to life. Rather than being a shallow and superficial soul, take some time to look outside yourself and gaze upon the universe you were born into. It is an amazing place and it would be a shame to miss it because you're too obsessed with your own navel.
 | How to hook up with members of the opposite sex | | A man and a woman meet each other at a singles bar. He bowls her over with his conversation, she dazzles him with her beauty. Within moments, they fall in love. Three months later they're married. |  | Much of success is about knowing how to anticipate problems | | When I was in my teens, my friends and I were addicted to arcade games. This is a pretty typical obsession with boys. I spent lots of my pocket-money on such games and even managed to win some of them. |  | How to develop more sophisticated taste | | We live in an impatient world. Technology has given up unprecedented control over what we consume. If you don’t like what you’re watching on TV, there’s a hundred other channels just waiting for you to flick over to them. |  | Concentrate on the future | | We all have miserable events happen to us in life. Believe me, I’ve had my share too. | | Learn the skill of resilience | | I saw a very interesting TV documentary a couple of weeks back on the issue of happiness. It was asking what makes us happy and what makes happy people different from those who aren't. | | Six things likely to make you happier in the long-term | | I've previously looked at how to get a short-term "hit" of happiness. Now I'll explore the more important subject of long-term happiness. | | Work hard to give yourself lots of options and opportunities | | Always finish what you start, is an adage that many people try to follow. And it's a good one in a lot of ways. But it probably focusses too much on the importance of the entire process towards achieving a goal. Generally, it's the earlier part that's most important, in my view. | | Take some time to reflect on how astonishing it all is | | Sometimes we all feel as if we're living grey little lives. We want to be moving galaxies, but instead we're stuck in traffic, feeling ill, assigned boring tasks, or filling in tax returns. No wonder everyone feels a bit down every now and again. |  | The four measures of financial success | | If you want to do well financially, you must first understand what it is you have to achieve. It's not just a matter of making more money. Instead, there are four factors you must consider. | | Be aware of your competing desires | | Theodore Dalrymple is an interesting writer who often has keen insights into the emotional turbulence within us all. He's a doctor and psychiatrist who spent many years practising in a hospital and a prison in a deprived area of England. As he had to deal so much with those at the bottom of life's heap, he witnessed many of the tragedies that face us all at their most raw. |
New articles are being added all the time, so make sure you bookmark Paul's Tips and come back.
|
|