Keeping perspective

I heard some awfully sad news today, which got me thinking about what really is important in life, and what isn’t.

On reflection, the list of unimportant things is virtually endless.

Trying to win a debate on Twitter with someone you’ve never met (OK, maybe occasionally I’ve done this!), or how many followers you have or ‘likes’ you attain, for example – these fit snugly under the ‘not important’ banner.

Wasting time with toxic people? Definitely not important.

Celebrity gossip, trying to be ‘better’ than other people or endlessly striving to gain the approval of others, excessive material possessions, caring about the opinions of everyone, living too much in the past (or the future), judging other people…the list of unimportant stuff goes on, & on, & on.

Why worry?

Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits once wrote a song called Why Worry which essentially pointed out that worrying about life’s provocations is rarely time well spent, because eventually whatever it is you’re worrying about will pass (in a nutshell).

There’s something in Knopfler’s argument too, as the neat flow diagram below shows!

3 things that are important in life

Clearly, there are many, many trivial matters that we shouldn’t rank too highly. But what, then, truly is important?

Here are 3 things that you should prioritise:

(i) Health – your wellbeing is paramount: eat well, play well, live well, in the words of the old jingle!;

(ii) Love – treasure your friends & family, and for whatever it may mean to you, your faith; and

(iii) Truth & contentment – your education, view & understanding of the world, & ultimately your happiness.

When all’s said and done, life is fleeting. As the tabloid talk show host Jerry Springer used to say at the end of each episode of Springer:

‘Take care of yourselves, and each other.’