Occasionally you will write or say something that you think is pretty good. It’s rare, but it can happen. Even rarer is the occasion where someone else is struck by what you wrote or said. And almost never, you run into someone that quotes and reminds you that you said something decades ago that made a difference in their lives or practice. With this being the last “Michaelism”, I am saddened that as I look back, I should have been able to say or pen something better. My goal has always been to make sure today is better than yesterday. My only regret is that I was never a great speaker, communicator, or author. In this last article on Michaelisms, I am going to take the last chapter from one of my books called THE ROADMAP to Wealth and Security (Your Complete Guide to Dental Transitions). This was the last chapter and really just a postscript to the book. It includes my favorite poem, The Station, and a few more Michaelisms. It’s a bit “preachy” but that’s not new. Hope you enjoy it and try to embrace the content. I think it can make a difference in your life.
Chapter 22
I wanted to close with something a little personal. I have had the opportunity to fall down in my journey more than most. In fact, one definition of an expert is someone who has failed at a particular area more than anyone else. Below is a copy of Robert Hastings’ prose The Station.
TUCKED AWAY in our subconscious minds is an idyllic vision in which we see ourselves on a long journey that spans an entire continent. We’re traveling by train, and, from the windows, we drink in the passing scenes of cars on nearby highways, of children waving at crossings, of cattle grazing in distant pastures, of smoke pouring from power plants, of row upon row upon row of cotton and corn and wheat, of flatlands and valleys, of city skylines and village halls.
But uppermost in our conscious minds is our final destination–for at a certain hour and on a given day, our train will finally pull into the Station with bells ringing, flags waving, and bands playing. And once that day comes, so many wonderful dreams will come true. So restlessly, we pace the aisles and count the miles, peering ahead, waiting, waiting, waiting for the Station.
“Yes, when we reach the Station, that will be it!” we promise ourselves. “When we’re eighteen. . . win that promotion. . . put the last kid through college. . . buy that 450SL Mercedes-Benz. . . have a nest egg for retirement!” From that day on we will all live happily ever after.
Sooner or later, however, we must realize there is no Station in this life, no one earthly place to arrive at once and for all. The journey is the joy. The Station is an illusion—it constantly out distances us. Yesterday’s a memory; tomorrow’s a dream. Yesterday belongs to a history; tomorrow belongs to God. Yesterday’s a fading sunset; tomorrow’s a faint sunrise. Only today is there light enough to love and live.
So, gently close the door on yesterday and throw the key away. It isn’t the burdens of today that drive men mad but rather regret over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow. Regret and fear are twin thieves who would rob us of today.
“Relish the moment” is a good motto, especially when coupled with Psalm 118:24, “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.”
So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, swim more rivers, climb more mountains, kiss more babies, count more stars. Laugh more and cry less. Go barefoot oftener. Eat more ice cream. Ride more merry-go-rounds. Watch more sunsets. Life must be lived as we go along. The Station will come soon enough.
Robert Hastings
Words of wisdom: Life is all about the journey, not the destination. If you cannot find a way to enjoy the trip you will have wasted your life. Don’t get stuck in the “I’ll do this when” excuse mode many of us live. It will never be the perfect time to do anything. There will never be enough information for you to digest in order to not make a mistake. The mistake is NOT going for it. Now is the time to embark on the changes and actions described in this book. Excuses and procrastination accomplish nothing but holding you captive. If you are reading this, you are ready to do it.
For those of you that “live to work” rather than “work to live”, I have one other quote from A Day at a Time by Zondervan, 1974: Called Destination Sickness.
—-the syndrome of the man who has arrived and discovered he is nowhere. He has achieved his goals and finds they are not what he had anticipated. He suffers the disillusionment of promises that petered out—-the payoff with the kickback! He has all the things money can buy and finds decreasing satisfaction in all he has. He is satiated and unsatisfied. He’s got a pot full of nothing. He’s in the land of ulcers and cardiacs, alcoholism, divorce and suicide! He suffers from the “neurosis of emptiness.” He’s the man who has become a whale of a success downtown and a pathetic failure at home. He’s a big shot with the boys in the office and a big phony with the boys at home. He’s a status symbol in society and fake with the family. “Destination sickness”: the illness peculiar to a culture that is affluent and Godless.
One LAST bit of advice. Especially for those of you who have “successfully ended four marriages” and feel this is a great wealth building strategy. Every person will choose to cheat. You will either cheat your health, family, or work. One question you should ask your spouse is: “What do I need to do to be the husband/wife that you once thought I would be?” Take the answer and change your life.
Mike Abernathy, DDS
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