Tag: etiquette

The principles that define how I live.

When I think about how I want to live, a few ideas come to mind. I think they are sort of how I see my life and lifestyle. I do know there is a difference between principles and practices. Sometimes I don’t always have the time, energy, or money to live out my principles to the maximum, but they are what I strive to attain. Below are a few things that come to mind.

  1. Respect. I strive to respect others, and I expect them to do the same. I can tolerate a lot, but I still respect this quality in people and hope to embody it. It is a challenge for me, because I am a little too witty, and I can be very sarcastic. I can also rant with with the best of them if disturbed. That just makes me more stressed out though.
  2. Kindness. I think this is in tune with respect. As you might have guessed, I am a fairly empathic person. I believe that treating people with respect and kindness greatly improves their quality of life.
  3. Understanding. I have spent a lot of my life studying and thinking about deep subjects. I have a fairly high intelligence and have had a voracious appetite for knowledge throughout most of my life. I seek to truly understand everyone.
  4. Beauty. I like being surrounded by beautiful things. Nice clothes, clean and nicely decorated home, etc. I also like the arts and natural beauty. I can’t deny that physical beauty has an effect on me, but I try to not let it interfere with my judgement.
  5. Creativity. There has always been a little bit of creativity at work inside me. As a child, I was artistic. Creativity also came out in my computer programming. Even right now, I am pursuing the creativity of writing. It goes with the love of beauty.
  6. Elegance. I lean toward having a refined taste. Refinement, grace, and beauty in movement, appearance, and manners is something that calls to me. I don’t see myself as a snob, nor do I like snobbery, but I do like elegance.
  7. Sophistication. I like the idea of being sophisticated. I don’t know if I meet the mark, but I think I aim for the target. I like know about the world in general, and it’s many people and cultures.
  8. Quality. I like things that don’t look cheap, or break, or wear out easily. I sort of respect this about heirlooms or antiques. I don’t own a lot of them, but I like that some things were made to last. I wish more things were made to high standards.
  9. Minimalism. I wouldn’t say I like an empty house, but I don’t like too much. If there is clutter everywhere, it make me uneasy. It’s about having just the right things and not a lot of things that you don’t use. I’m ok with things of beauty of course.
  10. Cleanliness. I like things to be clean and tidy. I know it takes a lot of energy to keep everything clean, but minimalism helps. Of course, this also goes along with personal hygiene. I try not to judge, but it’s really a must if you are around people.

What do you think of my choices? What would you add? Let me know in the comments, and please remember to like, share, and subscribe!

How do I express gratitude?

I think the best writing is writing that is thick with truth. One of my objectives with this blog is write with as much honesty as possible. There’s always a temptation to just say something positive, or say what’s expected. For some reason, we do that almost habitually and I think it creates a society that never faces the truth. I never liked dishonesty, but I know people are sensitive, so I just go along with it, but here’s the truth. I don’t express gratitude very well.

Here are some of the things I will do. I will say thank you. I will tip well at bars and restaurants. I will say grace over the food on the holidays. I will smile when you give me a gift, even when it wasn’t what I wanted, and I will feel guilty when I dispose of it later because I don’t need it.

I will be gracious in all ways, and I also don’t wish to lose any of the blessings that I do have. The problem is, I don’t know if I appreciate everything as much as I should. I don’t know that my gratitude is heartfelt at all times. Sometimes I fear it is just me being nice or doing what’s proper.

It’s actually hard to buy me a gift. If I really want something, I will just go buy it myself. There’s even some satisfaction in that because I like being independent. There’s also another problem. I’m a minimalist. If people gave me a lot of things, I’d have to find a way of getting rid of it or my home would eventually be full of clutter. I know it’s the thought that counts, so I just smile and take it, and I think that’s the most gracious thing to do, but I don’t think it’s honest. It’s yet another small way to hide the truth and save someone’s feelings.

I also have another problem with gratitude. I know what I want, and there are some things I just can’t have. I should be counting the blessings I do have, but I find it’s the things I can’t have that I spend all my time thinking about. Everything begins to look dim after you find what you really want. The frustration of not getting it really causes you to become indifferent to a lot of things you should appreciate.

Something else that gets in the way of gratitude is that it’s actually hard to want what you already have. This is why our garages become filled with junk we once thought we just had to have. If only we could see where it ended up, we could have saved that money. This is another reason I am a minimalist. I know that 90% of the things you buy end up in the dump heap, unless you are a hoarder, and then your home becomes a dump heap.

Basically, I know that gratitude is a great thing to have, but I struggle with it.

What are your thoughts on gratitude? Let me know in the comments. Don’t forget to like and subscribe!