Emotional Investment

When I heard that Merle Haggard had passed, I was saddened.  I listened to and played old Hag songs that week just to try and remember.

When I heard that Prince had died, I was shocked... and saddened.  I listened to and played a few songs just to try and remember.

Why?

Both were gifted singers, writers, and musicians. Both in some way impacted my childhood. I did not know either of them personally. Why did I feel the need to pause? To grieve?

I think it is not so much about them as it is about me. They were on their journeys; going their way. Our paths intersected when I heard them and made the commitment to emotionally invest!! I chose them... and now they are gone. And, now I mourn their passing.

Our lives are filled with such moments. For everything that we put our hearts to, we will at some point experience loss. It is the way and nature of our human experience. That can be to death, divorce, distance, disillusionment, disinterest... and so many other things...

How unfortunate that more often than not, we miss it the most, when it is too gone to regain.

Investments of the heart are no different than any other kind, we need to stay in for the long term. It's the only way they truly appreciate.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Doctor visits

I went to the doctor today...upper respiratory infection with a side of sinusitis! At least that is what I was told! Isn't that how it works with doctors? We wait in the "waiting" room and then are herded into some triage area for them to add to the bill with temperature, weight, and blood pressure checks! I am thinking maybe to fore go all the perfunctory "padding of the bill" and get to making me feel better! But instead, I get to read the equivalent of War and Peace in out dated magazines as I am attempting to tune out what is surely the spawn of Satan while hoping that the noxious chemical smell causes me to pass out so that time will pass more quickly. I am certain that all 26 of the people who work in the office have some role that keeps them busy, other than, of course, caring for the patients! I have learned how to cook chili, paint cars, and cheat on taxes all from the other side of those smoky glass windows of the "Reception Office." Al...
Read more

Conscientious or contentious...

I have been thinking about the difference between being conscientious and contentious. One means to be thoughtful about doing something the right way, while the other means to be argumentative. They are not opposites directly, but in a more figurative way they can be. I have long considered myself to be conscientious; seeking to think, speak, and act rightly. My thought has been that it is just as easy to get along as it is to create trouble or to engage in exacerbating it! While at the same time, I tend to be head strong and resolute about things of consequence to me, and often labor arduously over my position. In other words, I can be argumentative... contentious. Ironic as it is, I have the propensity to be both. I am both! Now comes the hard part; finding the balance. We should always be considerate and thoughtful, working to live out a higher purpose in our lives. And, it's okay to be passionate about what we feel and think. However,  we have to be cautious to not be comba...
Read more