We do not have to try very hard to find something to be upset about, to criticize, or to complain about.
Negativity is easy.
It is also lazy and selfish.
More difficult, but also infinitely more worthwhile, is finding things to be happy about, to be grateful for, and to celebrate.
Positivity, specifically optimism, requires effort, however.
And, if we do not want to give in to negativity, we must be diligent in our battle against our baser urges.
We have to rise above laziness and strive for that which is difficult.
We have to strive to be optimistic.
Not only will it lift us up, but it will also lift up those around us as well.
The harder we work to keep our heads up, the more we look for and find the good in things instead of the bad, the more we will discover that our life and the lives of those around us actually change for the better.
Paradoxically, this will lead us to having less to be upset about, to criticize, and to complain about.
Holistic Budo: As it is in budo, so too it is in life. As it is in life, so too it is in budo.
Robert Van Valkenburgh is co-founder of Kogen Dojo Self Defense Academy where he teaches Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Photo by Ana.*
*Robert Van Valkenburgh’s black and white photography can be seen at My Darkness To Light
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