We stumble from room to room looking for bright spots. Making do.
Or perhaps we recognize we need to change.
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This piece came to me from two disparate sources. One from a Henry David Thoreau quote. The other by way of an HGTV series.
Two sources that you would not normally see in the same line, paragraph, story, or book. Bear with me.
Thoreau’s (attributed) quote, “No one is as old as those who have outlived enthusiasm,” reminds us that the concepts of age and old are not only associated with the number of years that have passed in one’s life. We have all met so-called old people who have more energy, cheer, joy, pep, and smiles than people half their age. They have enthusiasm for life. They greet each day—or at least, most days—with interest and purposeful emotion. These energizing bunnies bring light to any space they enter. They see the world with wide-eyed optimism, hope, and promise.
Conversely, you have endured the soul-sucking presence of people who always find problems, slights, inconvenience, tribulations, and boredom from the moment they place their feet on the floor each morning. They squint their eyes, letting in as little light as possible. Enthusiasm is a foreign concept.
One builds a house of light and wonder. The other lives in a darkened structure.
This leads us to the HGTV series: The Ugliest House in America. The host travels to different regions of the United States looking for those houses (nominated by their owners) with disjointed architecture, hideous décor, terrifying design, and questionable functionality. These are homes the homeowners themselves have little enthusiasm in which to live. At the end of the season, one of the homes is declared “The Ugliest House in America” and wins a $150,000 makeover. A lot of laughs and a lot of “What in the world were they thinking?”
The HGTV show uses three scales to rate ugly homes. The higher the score, the uglier the structure.
The Connection.
I have periods when enthusiasm is difficult to find. You, too, I would guess. We find ourselves in a funk or confused about where we are and what we should do next. It can be a joyless time for us and those around us. We might feel as though, in our mind, we live in the ugliest house in America. We stumble from room to room looking for bright spots. Making do. Or perhaps we recognize we need to change our thinking, planning, and direction. Instead of a renovation, we engage in a repurposement. Where are we going? What do we want to do?
Maybe, like the HGTV series, we would do well to develop an enthusiasm scale for what we do. Let’s say your scale is “1” (not much enthusiasm) to “4” (off-the-chart enthusiasm). I choose to use an even number for the scales, eliminating the cop-out of gravitating to the middle number. With an even number scale, you are either leaning toward enthusiasm or away from it.
For instance, mornings you’ll find me on the beach at sunrise. Most of the time, that earns a “4” on the enthusiasm scale. At times, though, the number drops. Not because of the beach, clouds, sun, or temperature. They are all part of the texture and add to my enthusiasm. It dips if someone has interrupted the solitude with a lot of yammering and negative vibes. Once I identify that I start adjusting the next morning to keep the enthusiasm high.
The scale helps me engage in a renovation of sorts. After all, I don’t want to live in the ugliest home in America (especially if it is in my mind and heart).
How do your daily activities measure up on that scale?
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My newest book, Sharing Wisdom Across the Ages: From Elementary School to Retirement, in eBook and paperback was released on January 1, 2023. Click here for more information.
©2023. Steve Piscitelli
The Growth and Resilience Network®
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I invested 33-fulfilling years of my life as a classroom teacher. Starting with 7th-grade students and ending with college students. Along the way, I have written thirteen (published) books, written and recorded two music CDs, have written an upbeat blog since May of 2010, produced a monthly podcast channel (for five years), and created original videos for my YouTube channel (for more than a decade). I have had the pleasure and honor to deliver keynote talks and workshop facilitations in every region of the United States. I recently completed the manuscript for my first novel and am currently seeking representation for that work.
One of my community service activities sees me working with the Baptist Medical Center Beaches Pet Therapy Program. This worthwhile service brings smiles and comfort to staff, patients, and family members.
Why do I do what I do? Conversation (true dialogue) has become a lost art. Collective monologues have taken center stage. Authentic questions about the person in front of us have given way to either diatribes or inarticulate silence. I believe to build community we must have meaningful, at times difficult, and yet respectful conversations about people, places, and purpose. Before we can do that, we must see the person in front of us.
