Beginning, Middle Or End

“It’s your life — but only if you make it so.”

–     Elanor Roosevelt

More people have probably walked through the doors of health clubs in the last two days than the previous thirty days combined.

Web searches for “diet,” “weight loss,” “carbs” and “exercise” are likely at all-time highs.

As humans, we love beginnings.  They tend to be exciting.  New.  Fun.  Full of adventure.  As humans, we tend to stop at beginnings, and that robs us of the pleasure and sense of achievement that comes with finishing things.

Beginnings are great, but they’re just beginnings.  Making our lives our own is a process full of middles and ends, as well as beginnings.  Finishing what we begin helps kick off the next phase.  In fact, modern music conspires with ancient philosophy to remind us of this.  Semisonic’s “Closing Time”  quotes Seneca the Younger, a Roman philosopher who said, “Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.”

And so it goes.

Beginnings are part of the gig.  But they are just part.

Staying in makes a difference.  Soldiering on makes a difference.  Fighting through makes a difference.  Whatever we do next, beginning, middle and end make a difference.

Beginning, Middle, End.  Whichever, whenever, however.  Make it so.