Guilt-free Diet

by John Galt

I need to lose weight.  I’ve been adding on a few pounds here and there and now it is affecting my health.  Although I could lose a few pounds, I’m not talking about body weight.  I’m talking about the baggage that I carry around that keeps me from sleeping, adds stress to my life, and leaves me frustrated. 

We all have baggage.  Whether it is the failings of our kids, the guilt from our parents, unfulfilled dreams or the uncertainty of our economy, we tote it all along with us and it wears us down.  Eventually, we wear down and wear out.  My baggage has been growing for years.  I lug guilt and frustration like a draft horse.

 

Remember when you were a kid and your biggest constraint was not tracking mud in the house?  The world was yours.  The outdoors was a magical place to roam without a care.  At night, you slept soundly while dreaming of spacemen and cowboys, princesses and spacewomen.  Everything was possible.  No worries were carried from day to day.

What happened?  When did we become the ones responsible for our kids, out parents, our community, our employment, and our world?  When we became adults, we took on worrying as a competitive sport.  We wring our hands and relay our latest burden to all that will listen.  Our load gets bigger until we cannot sleep, we eat to comfort ourselves, and we suffer from the burden of it all.

Well, I’m on a diet.  I have a workout plan in place.  I’m going to stop worrying and whining about my responsibilities and take action.  I might have to do some heavy lifting.  I hear it is good for the heart. 

There are things that matter and there is everything else.  As part of my diet, I’m cutting out all the things that don’t matter to me.  They don’t affect my daily life and I really don’t have an opinion on the matter, so I am not giving them another thought.  Your diet may be different.  I know that time changes our priorities, but I’ll move them to the back burner for now.  Feeling lighter already.

Next, of the things that matter, I can affect some by my actions and over others, I have no influence.  Of those that I cannot affect the outcome, I will give those to God and put them on my daily prayer list.  An example of one thing on the list is my children’s safety while driving.  They have a safe, well-maintained car and years of instruction.  I’ve done all I can except remind them of the weather conditions and caution them about construction on their route.  I put them in God’s hands.  To think I can do otherwise is folly.

Of those things I can affect, those are my new workout routine.  I am working out a routine that takes action to resolve the weight I carry around, weight contributed by each and every worry in my life.  I’m changing the way I eat and adding exercise rather than complaining about my weight.  I’m going to prioritize what I need to accomplish at work today and this week, set realistic goals, and get moving on my plan.  For the people in my life, I will work to teach them strategies to help them to be more independent.  I cannot keep trying to do so much for others.  It is killing me and how will they survive without me?  How about they learn how to survive without me and I am still here?  Self-reliance is a good thing.  I will still be here to champion, guide, mentor, and coach.  That will free up time to enjoy my time with family and friends, not the harried rush in and out of each other’s lives, torn between to-do lists and errands.

I’ll still have plenty to do.  I’d love to have more time to volunteer at the organizations that benefit my community.  I’d love to spend time with family sharing the accounts of our days and not worrying about how I am going to fix their challenges.  I’d like to spend my time helping to find solutions, not fixing their problems.  Oh, the possibilities!

The area that is still undecided is my country.  For that, I don’t have a plan for action, yet.  Although I am only one voice, I still believe I can affect change.  The condition of this country is probably half the extra weight that I carry and the majority of my frustration.  It affects every aspect of my life and all of my relationships.  I want so many aspects of the country to be different.  I want less crime, less government entitlements, fewer taxes, better national and cyber security, and an economy that stimulates better jobs, especially in research and technology. 

I have a long list of worries about the country because they affect my daily life.  Has the poor state of the economy increased crime such that it is unsafe for my parents to live alone?  Can they continue to afford their bills?  Will the divisive nature of race issues in this country put my children at risk simply by the color of their skin?  Are they safe from conflicts between the perceived “haves” versus “have nots” about which that politicians rant as the root of evil in our society?  Will my kids be able to get a job commiserate with their education when they graduate from college?  Am I safe in my neighborhood?  Will I have a job tomorrow?  Will this country be the best it can be again?

If I didn’t have hope for the future of this country, I’d toss my concerns in the “don’t care” pile and walk away.  But, I still believe that the US can return to her glory.  For that, I have carried my concerns as worries for the future.  Now, I’m going to put together a plan and trade my worries for actions.  Worrying about the state of the country isn’t doing anyone any good.  But talking and writing about it just might.  I’ve looked up the contact information for my government officials.  I’m drafting some letters, not to complain, but to explain.  We can do better and if they aren’t willing to act, we can do better in the next election.  I’ll tell them what is important to me and those around me.  Maybe I’ll incite others to speak up and to write about their concerns.   It’s our country and it is time that we take it back.

The extra weight of my worries about this country that I have carried around is affecting my health and the health of those I love.  I’ve earned gold medals in the worried triathlon for years.  This isn’t going to be easy.  I’m going to start slow by lifting my pen and doing a few reps.  I’ll speak clearly so my representatives don’t get confused.  TAKE THIS COUNTRY BACK from the entitlements, the crime and the hate that divides us.