Nothing Lasts

‘Nothing Lasts’. Does that title make you feel sad? Does it sound negative to you? Is it the sort of remark you expect from someone who is bitter and regretful? Do you imagine only someone who had been hurt/disappointed/rejected/abandoned would say it?

The source of happiness

Nothing lasts, is something I constantly remind myself because it helps me connect with the source of my happiness and helps me to be resilient in the face of adversity.

Nothing lasts

You may think it’s counterintuitive, after all there are things that last forever aren’t there? I don’t think so and I believe that permanency doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. Even if our feelings don’t change (love for instance), there is no guarantee that we or the person or thing we love will always be there. We can’t take anything for granted, especially our relationships, jobs, homes, freedom, and health.

Reason to be cheerful

Rather than make us sad, this should make us more appreciative of what we have and hold on and appreciate it dearly when we have it. Knowing it could be taken or lost at any time makes it, in my opinion, even more precious and encourages and enables us to savour it. There is an abundance of research that shows that gratitude and appreciation are the most common characteristics of happy people.

The good and the bad

Although science shows that negative feelings are stronger and last longer in our minds and bodies, they too are temporary. Most of us, unless we suffer from a mental condition that keeps us stuck, recover from disappointment, anger, resentment and sadness. Knowing and remembering this, helps me cope better on days when things seem to go wrong, be unfair and/or challenging.

A moment in time

The home I live in and consider to be ‘mine’ has been occupied by numerous people who probably held the same belief that the property was ‘theirs’ for more than 150 years. No matter how long I stay. in the grand scheme of things I will merely be a temporary caretaker. Sometimes, I notice the scars and scratches on the doors, and wonder about the story of how they got there, by whom and in what circumstances.

Awareness of now

It is quite likely that we will look back at this present time from our future and remember all that was good about it. What a shame if we can’t learn to do that in the moment. Even if things are bad now, they are likely to be different if not better in the future, offering us hope.

Nothing lasts

There is not a person, an object or feeling that cannot be broken, taken or die. Babies and toddlers grow, children leave home, parents age, jobs change or cease to exist, seasons change, the world changes, we change, nothing lasts!

Enjoy the presence of that which you love, like or enjoy whilst you can, because nothing lasts, including you!