A scene I noticed this morning made me think about this truth:
Your mindset determines your choices. Choices you make shape your future.
Three times a week, I go for a walk in the morning around a small lake near my home. The lake is surrounded by a paved sidewalk, with benches and all sort of trees alongside. I meet a lot of retired people who enjoy walking around, resting on benches or catching up with their friends of similar age. The sidewalk is not crowded, and I love how people passing by greet each other, although they are complete strangers.
I was walking and enjoying the green nature this morning, absorbed in my own thoughts. At a distance, I started noticing three men sitting on a bench and chatting. All three of them looked like homeless people, with dirty clothes and poor personal hygiene. They were all sipping beer and two of them were angrily making ample gestures and explaining something to the third. A short distance away, a worker from the park maintenance company was cutting the grass and tending to outgrown bushes. The worker was not paying attention to passers-by, looking very much absorbed by his work and what he was listening to, through the white earbuds contrasting his green working cap he wore on his head.
As I was walking towards the worker, I heard a clear voice coming out of his earbuds and figured out he was listening to a language learning course. I could not help but notice how he was quietly working and using the time to focus on learning something new. In passing by the bench where the three homeless people were discussing, I could hear them complaining about the insufficient monetary support from the state. They all seemed very upset that no one gives them enough money to survive. Without knowing anything about their lives, I was amazed by how entitled they felt, how they were expecting others to provide for them.
And just like that, the contrast between the worker and the three homeless people struck me:
The worker looked responsible for what he was doing. The others were blaming others for their situation.
The worker was bringing his contribution through his work. The homeless were sipping beer and angrily debating about the unfairness of the world.
The worker was quiet and at peace, the homeless people were frustrated and agitated.
The worker chose to work, the homeless people chose to complain.
The worker focused on solutions, the homeless people focused on the problem.
Consciously or not, each of them was choosing what to focus on and how to spend their time and energy.
I am certain there are sad stories and unresolved trauma behind the scene I witnessed. But I could not help but notice how the situation they were all are in, depended on their own choices. And how their choices were influenced by their mindset: the words they told themselves, the way they looked at their situation, the choice to focus on the problem not on the solution.
There are high chances I will never see those men again. But if they will repeat the choices I noticed today, I’d love to know where they will end up in a few years’ time.
