The Great Life…According to Mark Cigos

“I once complained about having no shoes until I met a man with no feet.”

-Anonymous

Incredible I must say how forgetful and spoiled we at times lean towards.

In a day and age when everything and anything we want is available at the touch of a button, with all the abundant gluttony and luxury, I’m still baffled how we repeatedly omit to recall how very fortunate we all are. How absent minded we increasingly have become, failing to live with gratitude for all that we have and are privileged to be living day in day out.

We complain, we are disappointed, we pout and stomp when something like a tenth designer purse isn’t sitting anew in our closet. Discouraged and ticked off when the latest limited edition sneakers don’t lace our feet. Down in the dumps when the highly sought after smartphone runs out of stock.

Where, when, how and why did we lose such perspective?

I’m not saying disregard material items and live the life of an extreme minimalist, what I am suggesting however is putting shit into perspective, radiating gratitude and gratefulness for what you have, who you are, where you’re at and what you’re living right now. Differentiate between what you want and what you absolutely must no doubt need.

There’s a big difference right there, a blatant reality check revealing truth.

I used to think I needed this and that, until I realized that what I really truly needed was a roof over my head, food, family, friends, my health, purpose and meaning. Want was more like the shit I bought when I was bored or fooled myself into believing I needed.

You don’t need anything until you really do or die need it, everything before and/or during is merely a mirage, a smoke show, an advertiser’s or marketer’s success or your own self induced belief.

Check yourself before you reck yourself.

See the thing is, the fact being, we don’t ever think we’ll die. We know we eventually will, we’ve heard plenty of death and seen it right before our very own eyes, but no way dude is death gonna happen to us, at least not right now right away today.

And that’s where real perspective starts to get blurred.

Impulse and fooling yourself fall into the same box. We give meaning to things that have no real meaning. Yet as natural creatures of habit, good habits seem easier to break than bad ones, and so we move forward and onwards and believe with all our beliefs that what we do have is never quite enough, and what we don’t have is ever good enough. We forget to say thanks for our shortcomings, dwelling solely on the negative, opting not to wake the fuck up, get up and move towards something higher and better.

We settle and remain complacent, dormant.

And it works equally the same on the other side of the spectrum.

One more designer polo or dress will make all the difference. One more martini at happy hour will settle the score.

Like what the hell.

Too much of too much is never a good thing.

One less oyster, one less pair of high end denim, perhaps that results into a few more needy mouths fed somewhere someplace on this planet.

Ever think of that?

Don’t short change yourself on what you deserve, just pay closer attention to what you really do deserve.

We deserve meaning in life, the right to leave a legacy and our world a better place than what it was before we stepped all over it.

Tread lightly as they say and give ‘em something to talk about long after you’re gone.

We never think we’re gonna die, but eventually one day we will. And when we do, what’s the remaining crowd gonna say about you?

Damn that bitch strutted Prada better than anyone else, or holy shit that guy sported Armani suits like no other.

I doubt it.

Instead, the real legends are the ones who loved what any normal human being might love, but instead chose to devote more of their time and energy here on earth to purpose and what really is needed of and from every living man and woman.

Last time I checked, no one got eternal recognition for what they bought, but more so what they gave away.

The rich drive Bentley’s sure, but the real rich drive people onwards and upwards.

What are you prepared to park and disregard? Opting for and choosing instead for real need, less greed, and a whole lot of selfless and unconditional love.

Life is short. We’ll all surely one day each see our day. Differentiate wants and needs and life may evolve into a more crystal clear picture for you, and the world that surrounds you.

In the meantime I’ll leave you with this from my favorite author and visionary, Seth Godin.

Enjoy.

You matter

• When you love the work you do and the people you do it with, you matter.
• When you are so gracious and generous and aware that you think of other people before yourself, you matter.
• When you leave the world a better place than you found it, you matter.
• When you continue to raise the bar on what you do and how you do it, you matter.
• When you teach and forgive and teach more before you rush to judge and demean, you matter.
• When you touch the people in your life through your actions (and your words), you matter.
• When kids grow up wanting to be you, you matter.
• When you see the world as it is, but insist on making it more like it could be, you matter.
• When you inspire a Nobel prize winner or a slum dweller, you matter.
• When the room brightens when you walk in, you matter.
• And when the legacy you leave behind lasts for hours, days or a lifetime, you matter.