T E X A R K A N A M A G A Z I N E
A SARINE THOUGHT… OR TWO COLUMN BY EMI LY SARINE
The Life Equation
“ Mama always said, ‘Life is like a box of chocolates: you never knowwhat you’re gonna get.’” Forrest Gump
A h, Forrest, there is such truth to your mother’s life observation. However, the more life I experience, the more I find it comes with a call to action and is not dependent on the luck of the draw like when choosing from the Godiva box. In fact, it seems to me to be downright mathematical. While I’m no mathematician or philosophical genius, I am a semi-old gal who has experienced a thing or two and has discovered a pretty accurate summation of life… LIFE = (OH YES! + OH NO!) AND YET... There you have it. The “oh yes!” moments added to the “oh no!” moments all raised to the power of the mysterious “and yet...” I have always been a proponent of simplicity whenever possible. It makes things much more palatable to my psyche. Thus, this simple equation puts life in a format my brain can take in and stew on for a while without gagging on the excess gristle. The three parts are pretty self-explanatory, but let’s flesh them out a little more, shall we? THE “OH YES!” These would be the highlights of our lives—the thrill of victory; the high of achieving a desired goal; the fulfillment of a longed-for dream; the desired answer to an earnest prayer; the gifts of joy, happiness, laughter, victory and accomplishment. These are the moments we love and can never have enough of. If we could have the “oh yes!” moments daily, we absolutely would. I’ve had many in my time. Some were big and others were small: winning my third-grade spelling bee; earning a spot on the cheerleading squads at my middle and high schools; being voted homecoming princess; getting into Texas A&M University as a transfer student to the Mays School of Business; marrying the love of my life; finding out I was pregnant with the child Ross and I had prayed for; birthdays; anniversaries; holidays; promotions; vacations; etc. “Oh yes!” moments are made up of all the good stuff we crave and enjoy. THE “OH NO!” These would be the hardships of our lives--the agony of defeat; the low of missing the mark; the emptiness that comes when a dream is dashed;
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L I F E & S T Y L E
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