Friday, June 26, 2009

What are you WORTH?

I'm on vacation right now. And I see lots of folks with fancy cars, expensive clothes, and trendy lifestyles. And I frequently see them swimming in the ocean, or any other number of physical endeavors.

And it came to me as I saw some overweight fat cat walking along the beach.  He had on nothing more a watch (worth more than both of my cars), a Tommy Bahama swimsuit, and a 3-day tan. I asked myself exactly what this guy was worth.

Not "worth" in the sense of how much stuff he had amassed in his life. Or how much his salary was. No. I estimated his measured worth by different standards.  My sense of worth comes from how well a person can handle stresses, failures, obstacles, and hardships.....mentally, emotionally, and of course physically speaking.  

With my focus on physical fitness, I asked myself, "If a wave just broadsided this beer-bellied man, how would he handle it?" His physique said it all. He was obviously WAY out of shape. I doubt he could swim. I doubt he could run.  I chuckled at his fancy sense of fashion and jewelry and answered, "If that happened, all that stuff wouldn't matter in the least." No it wouldn't. All that would be taken into account was how well he had conditioned his body to survive. How well programmed was his anaerobic power, his swimming skills, his endurance, his mental attitude?

Then I thought the same of myself. Without the tools of my trade or anything but my own body, how would I handle the same stresses?  I encourage you to ask the same....

What are you really worth??




2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Self-worth: Self esteem, self respect.

Self respect: Due respect for one's self and character.

Self-esteem: An attitude of acceptance, approval and respect toward oneself, manifested by PERSONAL recognition of one's abilities and achievments and an acknowledgement and ACCEPTANCE of one's LIMITATIONS.

How can you be so shallow as to judge a person by their physical appearance alone? Does asthetic physical traits hold your interest for very long? How interesting is a person who physically looks great - but has no personality or intelligence to contribute to a conversation?

Do you know what I saw when I looked at the picture you posted on this blog? I saw the natural beauty of the ocean, the rocks, the gorgeous beach and sun....I'm sorry you are in paradise on earth and can only see the imperfections...in my opinion, those imperfections are what makes that paradise so perfect...Exactly what sets us apart as individuals -our own imperfections, and the realization that we all have them.

Marie

Louis Hayes said...

I guess someone missed the "with my focus on physical fitness" disclaimer....
Sorry for the confusion.