This week, I felt inspired to write a post about why I love America.  Why do I love it?  I love that America provides us the freedom to make our own decisions and royally screw up those decisions at times.  I love that our culture allows us to learn from our mistakes and re-start our lives whenever we are ready to start again.

I used to make ALOT of my own mistakes.  But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized it’s WAY BETTER to learn from other people’s mistakes.  It’s always easier to learn valuable life lessons from other people’s mistakes, so that you don’t have to experience the pain and consequence of making that same mistake yourself.

This concept was put on display recently when I read a friend’s Facebook post, that asked the question:  “What Life Lesson You have Learned so far this year?”  She got 45 Responses, including mine at the end.  I wanted to re-publish them here so you can all learn as many valuable life lessons from other people, without going through these painful learning lessons yourself:

  45 LIFE LESSONS FOR THE SUMMER OF 2018: 

#1:  Let it go!  Don’t dwell on stuff.  People and situations change.  Don’t trap your mind thinking about things that have happened in the past.

#2:  Don’t take anyone or anything for granted.  If they leave you tomorrow, you’ll miss them.  So don’t miss them today when they’re here with you.

#3:  You can never know exactly how someone feels in any given situation.  Never expect someone is feeling and thinking exactly like you, because they aren’t.

#4:  Wedding planning has so many details.  For big, important events, always give yourself more time and patience than you’ll think you’ll need.

#5:  Don’t hold onto useless junk around your house.  If you’re not using it, there’s a reason:  It’s junk to you.  Throw it away, or give it to someone who will value it so that you can focus on using the things that are important to you.

#6:  You cannot conceal a fart in a mesh office chair or shared working space.  Be thoughtful of others with the power of your farts.

#7:  Hard-working husbands (or wives) can be more stressed than they let show.  Always be gentle and take care of your hard-working spouse.  You wouldn’t get as far without them.

#8:  It is Ok to do things I want to do without my kids and NOT feel guilty about it.

#9:  Life is too short to only dream of adventure.  Buy the ticket, take the trip, etc.

#10:  Ask for help when you need it, and accept it when it’s offered.  One of the best qualities of human beings is that they are wired to help each other.  Utilize this quality to help yourself.

#11:  Stop letting people use you.  Symbiotic relationships are healthy.  Selfish relationships hurt.

#12:  Don’t rely on anyone, or expect anyone to be perfect, except Jesus.  Everyone else will fall short.

#13:  It is possible to reach SOZO (The Greek word for healing or wholeness) in areas with extreme trauma.

#14:  Life’s too short to turn away from Happiness. Do whatever it is that makes you happy.

#15:  Everything is temporary.  Don’t stress too much.  Everything will change over and over again.

#16:  Love yourself.  Become your best friend, supporter, and adventurer.

#17:  If you are confident in who you are, and you are able to love people far past anything you thought you could do, you will find there is so much freedom when your worth is totally rooted in who the Lord says you are, and created you to be.

#18:  Taking time to your self is necessary and healthy, NOT selfish.

#19:  The only thing that really matters is the people you meet.  Live your life to reflect that.

#20:  Love, Trust, and Forgive.  Over, and over, and over again, to find what you are looking for.

#21:  Never work to receive a pat on the back.  Work because the work means something important to you.

#22:  Put your total trust in God, and watch him work.

#23:  Persistence and hard work will actually pay off eventually, and being less negative about the journey to the pay-off makes life better and more fun.

#24:  Don’t be afraid to eat cake occasionally.

#25:  Always prepare.  Always make sure to check that the salt shaker lid is screwed on tightly.  Don’t leave a job, until you have a plan to get a new one.  The grass isn’t always greener on the other side.

#26:  Be patient and love your enemies; this includes your political opposites.

#27:  Appreciate every day “normal” moments.  Be grateful that nothing bad is happening to you during these moments!

#28:  Be grateful for what you have, and don’t take it for granted, because before you know it, it could all be gone.

#29:  Keep your mouth shut when the words you’re about to speak won’t help anyone, or solve any problems.  Conversely, speak up when the words in your mouth can help others.

#30:  Grandkids really are a true gift from God!

#31:  Learn to delegate.  You shouldn’t do it all on your own.  Learn to work with people.

#32:  Learn to love even difficult people, because everyone has a story, and people are the way they are for a reason.  Loving just the easy people is the wrong way to love.

#33:  You are not responsible for other people’s choices.  (This was a hard one to learn and accept when I was working in an addiction facility.)

#34:  Forgiveness is as much a benefit for you as it is for them.  You need to forgive to truly heal, let go of anger, and move on.

#35:  Don’t worry about tomorrow.  It will bring its own new worries, and it will make today’s worries fade away.

#36:  If you’re lucky, you can get away with expired tabs for four months.  But you’ll get in trouble the fifth month.

#37:  Don’t be so afraid to lose the one you love, that you allow yourself to become lost as you sacrifice your happiness to make them happy.  That is scarier than just losing them.

#38:  Toxic friends will poison your life.  Get rid of them and don’t think twice.

#39:  People suck, including possibly myself sometimes.

#40:  Become so in love with your life that you forget everyone else’s expectations for you.

#41:  Trust your instinct.  God is speaking to you for a reason, and he’s the wrong one to ignore.

#42:  Choose to be joyful!  Be aware that Joy is a choice, just like unhappiness, anger, and irritability is a choice.

#43:  Sometimes it’s just smart to take things at face value.  Some things don’t need to be overthought.

#44:  Whatever you are going through, it’s NOT the end of the world.  Cry it out, and move on.  Sometimes when you get overwhelmed, it’s just best to take a nap and re-evaluate when you’re rested.  Don’t judge what you see on social media as the real deal.  It is not.  Not everyone is doing awesome, beautiful things all of the time!

#45:  This is going to be my comment that I add to the list: Successful people are like a rolling stone.  They build their momentum on little victories, and then their momentum carries them to accomplish huge, amazing, life-changing victories.  Be a rolling stone.  The small victories are just as important as the big victories, because every-day small victories are what gets you rocking and rolling, and grooving toward your dreams.

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