“Life is only as serious or as humorous as YOU make it. Lighten up. Go play softball. Fly a kite. Dance with your dog. Smile… it makes people wonder what you’re up to.” ~ Charlie Brown
I don’t want to draw too fine a point on this admission, but I learned a whole lot from reading the Peanuts comic strip growing up.
I discovered early I had the soul of Charlie Brown. For me, there wasn’t a more reliable self-help counselor in my early life than Charlie Brown and his friends.
Life was just as baffling to me as it was for Charlie.
How often I found myself the lone ranger because I hadn’t learned to be a reliable teammate.
I made the same mistakes over and over again, all because I refused to take the advice of others…
…only to discover later, when I was flat on my back, the lesson that as long as I repeated the same mistake I’d keep getting the same result.
One day, I found a group of people who, too, were tired of ending up on their backsides for repeating the same mistake over and over again.
After I said, “Enough is enough,” I found a little help for my problems and began to learn ways to do life differently.
Then one day, by some miracle, I stopped repeating the same mistakes.
And when I did think about returning to my old ways, I’d first check in with my friends, who I knew would stand with me, come rain or shine.
Even when I thought I had nothing to offer, or even a life worth living…
…if I bothered to reach out I always found at least one friend to stand with me.
And if I bothered to be there for others, I could always find myself surrounded by lots of friends.
So now, as an older man, I look back on the lessons I learned from Charlie Brown and his friends. I can think of at least 10:
- It’s okay to be afraid — just don’t let your fears control you.
- Persistence wins out. Never give up.
- It’s what you think of yourself that counts.
- Sometimes you need to talk.
- Sometimes you need to listen.
- Do what you love to do.
- It’s important to have friends who care.
- Big dreams lead to big things.
- Action creates reality.
- Laugh every day!
Just a thought…
Pat
Copyright © 2020 Patrick J. Moriarty. All Rights Reserved.
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