I am Braveheart…or at least I share some commonalities with Mel Gibson’s version of William Walace in Braveheart. I bellow a battle cry, wielding a shield as I plow through my day, hacking away at my to-do list with a broadsword and showing no fear. Everyday is a day filled with reckless abandon. My goal is peace of mind…”Freeeedommm!” from my list, but “Freeeedommm!” never comes, because the to-do list won’t die without me.
“Your heart is free. Have the courage to follow it.” ~ Braveheart
If I had a mission statement, it would be: “Optimism, within reason, when possible — but, if not possible, then by all means, pessimism. If you can’t be the happiest, then be the most miserable person in the room, because you should always be the most you can be. Go in full force with everything…or go home. Be as optimistic as the next guy, or as miserable.
“Our wits make us men.” ~ Braveheart
Have you ever played the game- Would you rather? Not the board game, but a party game for depressives, an ice breaker… a way to get to know someone you’d rather not know, at a bad party that you wish you had not attended: Would you rather be shot or stabbed? Would you rather be eaten by a shark, or fall off a building? Would you rather be anywhere else but here playing this game? I digress.
“We all end up dead, it’s just a question of how and why.” ~ Braveheart
I am not as young as I imagine myself to be, and plowing through life has left me with my share of battle wounds. I’m not speaking metaphorically about broken dreams, lost loves, or unavenged wrongs…I’m talking about actual wounds. The roadmap of scars on my forehead would put Harry Potter’s lightening bolt scar to shame, although my nemesis is not Voldemort…I am my nemesis…plowing through life without a shield.
“Every man dies, not every man truly lives.” ~ William Wallace
My advice to myself, and to you is slow down. I have cut bangs in my hair, and put a cap on my forceful enthusiasm. Not only do I retain more of my blood, but I still end up in the same place at the end of the day…with a long to do list. I try to find a way to enjoy life’s daily battles, because I know each battle may be my last.
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July 21, 2016, One Word Daily Prompt: Slowly~<a href=”https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/slowly/”>Slowly</a>
A lot from Lydia 
Oh, that crazy icebreaker game. What in the heck do those questions tell you about me. Be brave, Lydia! It is a cruel world out there.
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I think if you’d prefer to be eaten by a shark than to fall off a building you’re an Aquarius? No idea.
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The last paragraph on that post reminds me of a saying I used for a long time. You probably know it too. “The hurrrieder I go; the behinder I get.”
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I like it—and I think it’s true!
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My mother used that saying all the time. She’s been gone a long time but that still blasts in my brain every time I rush through life!
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Lydia, this is a very thought provoking post. I was never a fan of the movie Braveheart. However, the quotes you used and your references really showed that I have been battling that way as well.
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Thank you Lydia. I believe all the quotes all originated with William Wallace, and not the film. I am more a fan of the history than the film. But Mel Gibson does rage well.
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Being Canadian I didn’t know of William Wallace until the movie so that may be part of the reason it wasn’t my favourite. I do love history and I will say that Gibson was perfect for the role!
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“Every man dies but not everyone truly lives.” So sad but true. And I wonder if that includes those who are most selfish. They seem to never be satisfied.
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