Idealism and practicality

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We, as human beings, always want things to be a certain way. The idealistic way (whatever that means for us). And we want it right now, in an instant. Not having that can be frustrating.

But sometimes we forget that nothing in life is really sudden. Everything in life had a gradual and incremental process behind it, some we are aware of and some we aren't.

If we think a certain way, that's because of the stories we've told ourselves time and time again. If we love a certain way, that's because of the actions of love that we have acted out and have been acted on. And if we buy a certain product that solves a very specific problem, that's because of the extent to which those problems were problematic for us, individually.

Now, that doesn't necessarily mean that something is wrong with us as people. It only means that it is our nature.

Our experiences and internal stories influence our decisions. Our decisions make us who we are. This makes us and our thinking unique and different from each other.

But that's in the present. We might not like the present, and we might not agree on many issues in the present.

However, if we can agree on a common idealistic future, then we can always work together. The future hasn't happened yet, and the future is always better. And the best thing is that we can make the ideal future our present by making the decisions needed for it.

It might be so far off and the road can seem so long that sometimes we cannot even see the destination. Sometimes it can seem impossible.

But backtracking the ideal future to the next 2 to 3 steps to take is all we need to worry about. Having faith in the process and knowing for a fact that we will arrive is all it takes.

Idealism is required. But expecting to get to it in an instant is not practical. Not going to lie, it definitely can be frustrating and disappointing.

But remembering that it's a process brings us back to reality and helps put our focus on the only right thing to do – the next small actionable step.

(Originally written on 20 Apr 2022)

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