Deserving?

 What you deserve. It's a phrase you hear often from politicians, lawyers, and those trying to sell you something. What does that mean? It implies that you are worth whatever it is you want. Doesn't matter if it is a material thing or a mental thing. You deserve better. You are entitled! That's what it is really saying. Deserving something is a reciprocity. You have to have earned that return is my way of thinking about that. It all harks back to the philosophy that you will get what you sow. Some call it karma, others call it kismet. Whatever you call it, I believe you will get what you deserve. The thing about that is, you don't get to decide. You have to learn to live with the cards that are dealt to you, another old adage that rings with the truth. Fate isn't something you can control. It happens. Just like Forrest Gump said in the movie. 

 When you don't get what you want is that an injustice? That's what being implied isn't it? You should get it, you deserve it. The lawyers will promise you a big check, a settlement, that is justice. The politicians will promise to codify your wishes into some form of entitlement. The salesman, they are just trying to make a living for themselves. Their job is to convince you that you should have that new car, house or truck. You deserve it! But what have you done to create this entitlement, this fulfillment of your wishes? What have you done to deserve whatever? Unfortunately, that is always determined by others. Yeah, I know, stinks don't it but that's the reality. Ever notice how when something good happens to us we say how we earned that, we deserve it. When something negative happens we say, I didn't deserve that. Then we search for blame elsewhere. We search for someone, anyone that will agree with us, and give us what we deserve. We can sue for that, plead for it, or simply purchase it for ourselves. It all depends upon what we want. 

 Today we are seeing a crisis in mental health. In my opinion a great deal of that is being created by this entitlement attitude in society today. When you raise people to believe that they are somehow deserving of everything, it will lead to disappointment and anger. You will see the very behaviors troubling our society today. That's what happens when you expect the world to conform to your wants and needs. You have to learn to live with the cards you are delt, not demand a new deal! It is your choices that shape your life. Some choices are better than others. Not all your choices will yield good results. That's because everyone else is making their choices as well and may interfere with your plans. It happens that way. The others figuring you don't deserve whatever, but they do. That's also how that works. Yeah, disappointing isn't it. But you don't get to decide that. 

 But we are being told we can be empowered. That's a big word thrown about frequently these days. I'm empowered. What does that mean? It means you are given the authority, the ability or the power to do something. Thing is, you don't need anyone to give you that, you are born with it. It's called making a choice. That is your power. Making the correct choices will give you the power to succeed. Obeying the law, working hard, and accepting accountability, those are a few qualities required to be successful. Being moral, having strong ethical values, and honesty are also of primary importance. That is your empowerment! 

 Do we deserve our fate? This question is asked in this article I was reading. I'm thinking about the fate of the nation when I'm talking about what we deserve. Remember it is "we the people" that are the government of this nation. The nation is dependent upon the people, not the other way around. When the people decide what they deserve that is what is codified into law. The last paragraph of that article says this: "One chief causal factor for the decline of these former great nations is what has been described as “bread and circuses,” where government spends money for the shallow and immediate wants of the population, and civic virtue all but disappears. For the past half-century, our nation has been doing precisely what brought down other great nations. We might have now reached the point of no return. If so, do we deserve it?"  

Here's the link to the article. Do We Deserve Our Fate? - The New American