Astound Yourself

Lake with rowboat in early spring. Quote by

If we all did the things that we are capable of doing,
we would literally astound ourselves.
Thomas Edison

What we have done

I think it is only in looking back that we see that the things we have done are remarkable. In the doing of them we are pretty much just scrambling to keep afloat.

I think of all the years my mom put together wonderful meals on very little income. And I am sure all of us in retrospect marvel at the things our parents and friends have done. I know I pretty much took a lot of things for granted growing up but now looking back I see how hard things must have been for my parents and yet what a wonderful job they did with what they had.

Some of the things I now value the most such as family, brothers and sisters friends, and life experiences are a million times more valuable than any monetary gift I could have had.

This quote in one way is a spur to do great things I guess – but on the other hand perhaps we should recognize that we are already doing great things even if they seem small and inconsequential at the moment.

What we remember

About family and friends gone before us in many cases is very simple things. The smiles, the jokes they told, the laughter. Whenever I remember about one gentleman I cared for a few years ago was how kind and funny he was. He didn’t have money and his health was poor but he was a joy to be around.