When I was a kid, one place I always looked forward to going was my maternal grandparents’ house. My Grandfather was a bishop of the Anglican Church and was an extremely learned man with a Masters degree. He had a very impressive library with books that cut across different subjects. I would sit with him and we would have very deep discussions about issues. My topic for today however is not about the knowledge I got from him or the pride I derived from the fact that this amazing intelligent and handsome septuagenarian was my grandfather. Today I want to talk about his garden and the lesson I learnt from it.
He loved nature and had one of the most beautiful gardens I had seen at that time. He had different varieties of roses, jasmines and many exotic plants. At night the air was filled with the beautiful scent of the Queen of the night. Anyone who saw the garden knew that the owner had a very special taste in flowers and also that a lot of money had gone into making it look like it did. There was however one problem. There was no fence or wall. As such, goats seemed to also appreciate the taste of the flowers and I guess for them it was a special delicacy. They always found a way into the garden and then I would hear my grandmother shout, “Wale, those goats are here again o… go and chase them away.” I actually enjoyed chasing the goats and it was one of the special attractions and incentives for going to stay with my grandparents. However I often wondered if there was no better and more efficient way to deal with the goats? Of course there was and my grandparents apparently discovered it too. They built a fence around the house and once they did that the menace of goats stopped.
While the goats were having a field time with exotic cuisine in form of my grandfathers’ flowers, could he really blame them for what they were doing? The answer is no. By his not protecting his garden, he had given them permission to do whatever they wanted to do with his flowers.
Many people today like my grandfather are victims of their permissions. They will blame their work for their unhappiness. They will blame other people. They will blame the government. They will blame everyone but themselves. The truth however is that no event or condition can do to us more than we permit it to do. Whatever we may blame for mediocrity today, we should remember that we are not the first people to go through such and we will not be the last. Others have gone through and come out smelling like roses. The difference is in the permission we give.
We complain about people messing us up and taking advantage of us? Remember that no one can make you feel inferior without your consent. No one can walk on the back of someone who is standing upright and no one can step on the toes of someone who is in motion. Our actions give permission and if we have given permission then we should never complain about what we permit.
Many complain about their present circumstances but they do not realize that complaining about the present with no vision for the future is like having a headache and hoping that your neighbor will take pain killers on your behalf. Take responsibility. Excuses create the environment where negative permissions thrive. When you find excuses don’t pick them up. You will only create permission for more mediocrity. One of the greatest permissions that people give is the permission of comfort. Many are in fact prisoners of their comfort.
The next level of your life will never be found in the place of your present comfort. If your vision of tomorrow is not greater than your comfort of today, you will forever be a prisoner of your today. Stop permitting stagnation and mediocrity in your life. You will never rise above the excuses you give for mediocrity. Your present comfort as an individual, as a company or even as a Nation was never meant to be a destination. It was merely a bus stop on the way to a greater destination.
Have a Great Day!
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