Let’s think about time travel. But less “Back to the Future”
time travel, and more “Ebenezer Scrooge” time travel. Think of yourself 10 years ago. Imagine you are visiting an event in your
life back then. What kinds of things do
you notice about your personality, your relationships with family, friends and
loved ones? What were the goals, and
hopes, and dreams of your 10 year younger self?
Now picture yourself 10 years ago, visiting your current self. What are the observations that the younger
self makes regarding your current state?
Have goals been accomplished, have priorities changed at all, or are
they mostly the same?
I venture that for some of us, both experiences may cause
some slight depression (even if only upon seeing the clothing/hair styles our
younger self was wearing 10 years ago). On the other hand, this self reflection, might cause us great joy. Perhaps we landed that dream job we had hoped for 10 years ago. Perhaps our family or social relationships are exactly what we dreamed they would be.
For some of us, we may be doing exactly what we thought we would be
doing 10 years ago. For some-maybe not. For
some, life in 2012 is possibly even better than we thought it would be 10 years
ago. Regardless of our perception of what we
thought the world would be like in 2012way back in 2002-and regardless of how
much our 2012 self has lived up to what the 2002 self thought we would be-the
reality is, there is a certain clarity that comes from examining how our goals
and hopes and dreams change throughout the years.
Now you may be asking yourself, to what honor we owe this
dimensionally diluted discourse. Has Ben started drinking? Has he come across an
old bottle of percocets that may have expired back in 2005? The answer is no to
both. Maybe it’s because it is the middle of October, and I feel like this year
has gone by faster than years previous for some reason. Maybe it’s because it is an election
year. Maybe it’s because the author has
a four year old son that seems to grow up more and more every week, and his
father just isn’t ready for it. In the
mission field, it’s common to have “companion inventory” in an effort to resolve issues, build
a more efficient partnership, and ultimately a more successful
companionship. Often it becomes necessary
to conduct a companionship inventory when the two missionaries no longer seem
to be working in unison. Perhaps
distractions, or discouragement, or even misperceptions have caused them to lose
focus on their shared goal.
I think the philosophy of an “inventory” is quite
sound. Whether it is an inventory with
your spouse or roommates, or friends, or even yourself, it is nice to
occasionally recalibrate your compass, check your bearings , and identify areas
that could use more of your focus.
I encourage all of you to take inventory. If you are having a hard time getting
started, think of these questions:
“If my 2002 self could see my 2012 self, what is the first
thing they would notice?”
“What does my 2012 self-want to see out of my 2022 self, ten
years from now?”
Admittedly, this post is a little out of character for me. If you were attracted to the catchy title, only to be let down by the lack of humorous quips you've no doubt come to expect from me, I apologize. I assure you my soul searching, thought provoking posts are few and far between. Mostly I leave that up to some of my friends, who are much better at it than I.
