Wife checked out (2)

[2ltl2lt]

One day I met this man who didn't know what his purpose in life was, I sat and talked with him for awhile. He told me things about his job, his family, his wife. I sat and listened to him for longer than I thought. Before too long I asked him what would make you happy right now. He looked away and took a few deep breaths, and said he wished he had chosen a different path in life. To which I replied, what would you have done differently. He didn't have an answer. He didn't realize that happiness comes from within. That all he had achieved meant something. He didn't even realize that he had everything he ever wanted the whole time. It had been such a gradual accumulation of small bits of happiness he had taken it for granted. I told him all we can do is accept change for what it is and do the best we can with what we have. He was too blind to see the deeper underlying fear that had really been the issue the whole time. It seemed like the more he ignored it the more it would go away. When in fact it only grew stronger. He was too preoccupied trying to deflect and defend his own shortcomings as a family man that he lost sight of the very things that defined his happiness. As this conversation played on I thought how could this happen to such a good man. A man who simply didn't have a complete understanding of the nature of a relationship let alone a family. I was devastated by the pain he was feeling. It made me step back and reevaluate my own priorities and values. I suddenly understood the gravity of his situation, out of nowhere like a sledgehammer to the face. This man had no idea what he needed to do to be the person he wanted to be. He had no idea that the person he wanted to be was not the person he had become. While this was sinking in for me he said that the fear had controlled his life. Had caused him to avoid the problems in his life. He had become a slave to it. I felt bad for him. That is no way to truly live. He was not able to understand that these problems are his alone. No one can control you with your own feelings. They are yours. No one else can feel them for you. This man could be anything he set out to be, he choose to be what he was and can choose what he wants to be. It is up to him. When I first met him I wasn't sure if he was someone who I would like to get to know. The more I talk to him the more I realize that he has the key to all of it. He had shown me a world I have not seen. A world of possibilities that were obscured by the mundane. The fact that I met this man when I did is a testament to the cosmic absurdity that I subscribe to. I'm sure when he and I part ways I will miss things about him but I know that what I have learned from him will carry me to a better future.