It's been quite a while since I wrote anything in my blog, I take that as a good sign as my mind and conscience are clear. I'm just here living an Ordinary Life. I used to think when I was young that ordinary lives were boring , nothing to write home about, just routine staying at home lives , routine and mundane and that extraordinary lives were the ones filled with travel and amazing people and crazy adventure. Can life can combine elements of ordinary and extraordinary?
I think I thought life would be different, I guess we all do, don't we ? I thought I'd need to do something amazing lose a few stones, climb a mountain, learn a new skill, go on an adventure. I guess all of these things would have been fun, well not the dieting bit ! They would all have been memorable if I'd done them. Do I look at this from a different perspective instead ? Forget the dieting bit, it's not for me as cake tastes too good , I'll balance out my cake addiction by flirting with gym a few times a week. Now let's take the mountain, I'm climbing that bloody mountain, I've been climbing it relentlessly for many years, navigating my way through hazards , blizzards, rockfall and thankfully a few easier phases of the climb. Sometimes I've lost my footing but thanks to the safety equipment aka as some bloody good friends I've hung on. As for new skills, being a mother has taught me so much and given me so many rewards, being a mother of four means I have good negotiation skills and I can prevent a war breaking out ! As for adventures , I have a good life, maybe all my adventures have been small ones but that doesn't make them any less meaningful. My life isn't over I still have time to plan and experience the most fabulous adventures. There are still wonderful people waiting to meet me and help create the most colourful memories.
Did I get the meaningful life I expected ? No probably not but that doesn't mean I need to feel defeated . Life unfolds around us, we aren't always in control , it likes to shock and surprise us. But I'm here, I'm alive and enjoying all I have. I really am I privileged woman with a good life. Yes I have sad days but that's ok too. So maybe ,just maybe the gap between an ordinary life and an extraordinary one isn't that vast. Well that's a relief ! It's just about being honest, being happy whenever you can, enjoy the small things each day brings. If you do feel down let people help you find your smile again. The life I have may not be the one I'd have chosen but it's mine and I'm living it. I wonder what those looking in on my life think about it ? That's quite an interesting thought isn't it ? I think I'm doing an ok job with the resources available and under circumstances that can sometimes be a challenge !
I guess I used to underestimate an ordinary life and now I crave it and relish the moments when my life isn't a stressful, chaotic mess. I'm often wonder what life would have been like if we hadn't been catapulted into the world of organ donation and transplantation . Maybe my life isn't ordinary after all in a peculiar kind of way. I doubt many would want to trade places as its not the kind of extraordinary that anyone craves. I suppose in life we all want to make a difference but we aren't all here to change the World. If I can make someone happy every day and make a difference to their life I'll take that . To that person I'll have made a difference. If I'm able to do that for people then my life won't have been a waste. I think it's the society we live in and social media etc that makes us feel we are selling ourselves short if we don't live larger, dream bigger and reach for the stars (think S Club ) However there is a lot of good in living an ordinary life, a life of love, solid friendships, helping others, a life where you spend quality time with your family because you can. There is a value in having a quiet life. I'm so lucky to have the finances that allow me to work part time so I get to spend time with all those I love. With time left over so I can recharge myself too.
While having an ordinary life it doesn't mean you cannot have dreams and goals, dreams are good for the soul. One day you may achieve all of your dreams but this may take time and time is precious. You don't want to miss out on happiness now while waiting for bigger and better things to come your way. You need to find happiness every day and go to bed each night content . It's the little things. An ordinary life is enough. While I am enjoying my ordinary life I can use the energy I have to embrace any new opportunities that come my way. I can dream, that's when extraordinary things will happen , if I let them !
Tomorrow it's time for a week of extraordinary as I'm going on holiday with three of my precious children and I know we'll have fun and make wondrous memories that one ordinary day we can look back on and smile again. ❤️
