Choices or Decisions

I have a relative who is the same age as I am. She has all the material stuff that she could ever want and still wants more. However, her sex life is non-existent and her house needs lots of repairs.

I live paycheck to paycheck and cannot even seem to find the money for a cup of coffee. But my home is beautiful and well-built, and I have a fabulous sex life.

I wonder why some people seem to have all the stuff and none of the satisfaction of living. Does having lots of money preclude life's satisfaction and contentment? Why can't I have it both ways? Why can't I have lots of money and a beautiful home and a great sex life?

Because my priorities seem to be different than my relative's priorities. I have a great job and I love what I do. i don't get paid much to do it, but I also don't have as much responsibilities as I used to have when I made more money. I have free time as a college teacher. My time is not tied up in an 8-5 job with restrictions on how much time I can take for lunch. I get to learn from my students and interact with them. I feel as though I am finally comfortable in my own skin. My relative hated her job and was relieved when she was fired over 15 years of mistreatment.

My beloved and I are spiritually similar and have a great appetite for living. These were my priorities when I resumed dating after my divorce. Anything else was a waste of my time and therefore a deal breaker. I will not settle any longer for second best. My relative saw Daddy Warbucks and made a bee-line for him. Now, he doesn't like to do the same things she likes to do or what they used to do when they were dating. Plus, he has gained so much weight that he doesn't feel attractive any longer...no more date nights and no more snuggling on the couch watching movies in their pj's.

In the end, I am actually very satisfied with my life. I am healthy. I have a wonderful man. I have a beautiful home. I have a great job. I am content even though I cannot run right out and buy the first thing that strikes my fancy. I just released so much stuff and junk from 22 years of marriage that I really don't want a lot of stuff in my life or in my home.

So, is my life the way that it is based on choices or decisions? It must be that since I always have a choice at every step of the way (even a choice not to make a choice IS a choice), then I have control over my life to a very large degree. This is so empowering that I can easily make decisions based on those choices. Choices can also be considered as priorities, goals, plans, as well as boundaries, what I don't want in my life, what I prefer not to have in my life.

I am very powerful indeed. And my life is so very, very good all of the time. Contentment is strong with this one.
Jeanette