We all need to feel like when we get up in the morning we have a purpose – a reason that gets us up out of the bed and started with our day. The hard part is after we retire. Or after our kids leave the nest. We find it harder to figure out what to do with ourselves.
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in mourning
This can also happen after the death of a loved one. Particularly if you were the caretaker of that person. It’s hard to find a new normal and even harder to find that “thing” that gets us up every, single day.
what is your passion?
If you do have trouble finding what it is your purpose might be then ask yourself what exactly is it that fires you up – I mean, really fires you up. There are so many issues going on in the world. But even as one person, or a group of a few people, there are also positive differences to be made. Do you feel like you can make a difference? Is there something that you are so passionate about that you simply NEED to do something about it? That could surely be your purpose.
help others
A great way to help find your purpose can be to go out and volunteer. This is great because you can volunteer at several places and figure out what works the best for you. Would you want to volunteer at a soup kitchen? If you’ve never done it, it might not be for you. But then again, it might be exactly what you were destined to do now.
pets and a longer life
Are you thinking about maybe adopting an animal – a dog or a cat? Volunteer at your local animal shelter and decide if you can really take care of a pet. If not, volunteering will allow you to take care of and love all of the animals there without the expense or time it will take for you to have one in your home. Volunteering doesn’t have to be THE way you figure out your purpose, but it can help.
We all love having pets. They bring joy to our lives. They love us unconditionally. They are our best friend and confidant, they help beat loneliness and they just make us happy. However, did you know that pets really can help add years to your life? It might sound silly, but because of all of those reasons cited above, it’s true:
- Pets bring us joy – When you leave the house in the morning, you might often come home stressed out from the day’s work or activities. But when you open that door and your pet is there to greet you, all of that stress just goes away. Your pet is always glad to see you – no matter where you’ve been or how long you’ve been away. They will be there waiting for you to come home. What a great feeling that is!
- They love us unconditionally – Pets are great that way – no matter what we might have done to them – which I hope you NEVER do anything bad to an animal – they will continue to love you. You love them and they love you and you can always know their love will never waiver. Everyone needs unconditional love from someone – or something.
- They are our best friend and confidant – You can always tell your pet about your day or tell them your deepest, darkest secrets and you know what? They won’t judge you or tell another soul. It’s just between the two of you. Chances are, they’ll just want to snuggle and love on you. They are happy you’ve had a good day; they make you feel better when you’ve had a bad day; and all they want is for you to be happy. Just like your best human friends want you to be.
- They help beat loneliness – We all get lonely sometimes – it’s a fact of life. However, having a pet helps keep a lot of that loneliness away. There is always someone there to talk to; to keep you company; to play with, or just to lay by your side. You always know they are there, even if they don’t say anything to you at all. Our pets are there when you might not have anyone else and they love being there for you. It makes them feel needed. Everyone doesn’t believe animals know they are helping. But people with animals know exactly how great it is to have someone there for you all the time.
- They just make us happy – Have you ever watched a dog or cat play around when they don’t really think you are watching. Well, they really don’t care if you are watching or not. They have the best time all by themselves and flip around; chase their tail or just chase a butterfly without a care in the world? If that doesn’t make your heart happy then I don’t know what will.
A lot of animals are used as therapy animals and it’s because they can beat loneliness; bring your heart rate down just by petting them; and can reduce stress tremendously.
A caution is that it is a lot of work to care for them. But it is so worth it once you form that fur baby bond with them.
make some changes
Figure out what you are good at and decide if that’s something that you can use for the greater good. Something that can help fulfill your purpose. Chances are, you’ll find a way to use your knowledge; or skills to do exactly what it is you want to do. You might have even decided to or had in the past; made a career change based on what you know and what you can do. It happens every day.
be adventurous
Just like volunteering, make yourself get out there and try different things. You don’t know what you really, really like until you actually do it. It’s just like eating – you don’t know if you like or dislike something until you actually eat it. The same is true for life. If you are not doing things, then you don’t really know what you like or dislike.
Experiment with different things and something will come to you that you enjoy more than anything. That can make a difference in your or someone else’s life and you’ll know exactly what it is you want to do.
You are never too old to find something that lights a fire under your butt. If you haven’t found it yet, it will eventually come to you – just you wait and see.
