{"id":165,"date":"2015-09-16T16:19:35","date_gmt":"2015-09-16T16:19:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/simplyfabulous\/?p=165"},"modified":"2015-09-16T16:19:35","modified_gmt":"2015-09-16T16:19:35","slug":"your-life-episode-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/simplyfabulous\/2015\/09\/your-life-episode-guide.html","title":{"rendered":"Your Life Episode Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since I decided not to have cable TV in my tiny house, I have been using Hulu for my nightly relaxation\/entertainment. \u00a0And since Hulu has all of the “old” shows on it… I recently found myself watching Felicity<\/em> over again from the very beginning through to the season finale. \u00a0I used to LOVE that show and I was so excited to find it and be able to watch it again. \u00a0But rather like the first time around, I found myself stressing out for the characters… will she stay pre-med or go after her dreams of being an artist? \u00a0And more importantly, will she choose Ben or Noel??<\/p>\n

But one thing was different this time around. \u00a0Since it wasn’t live TV anymore, I could cheat. \u00a0I could either skip ahead an episode or two, or I could look up the episode guide online and see what was going to happen in advance. \u00a0I did the latter.<\/p>\n

The “Felicity Episode Guide” became my best friend… letting me know ahead of time what was going to happen so I didn’t have to worry when it appeared that Felicity was making a bad decision or that someone’s life was seemingly in peril. \u00a0I knew that it all was going to work out okay in the end… the episode guide told me so!<\/p>\n

It got me to thinking.<\/p>\n

Wouldn’t it be great if we had an “episode guide” for our lives? \u00a0Where we could skip ahead and read about what was going to happen ahead of time so we didn’t have to worry in the present? \u00a0We could see the results of our decisions before we made them, find out which way we should go and even what was going to happen to our loved ones.<\/p>\n

If only it was that easy, right?<\/p>\n

But even though it would be nice once in awhile to look ahead and see what was coming… in the end, I don’t really want an episode guide. \u00a0Half of the fun in life is being surprised and\u00a0not<\/em> knowing what’s around the corner! \u00a0Then when good things happen to us, we are genuinely exhilarated because we didn’t expect it!<\/p>\n

Plus, having too much information up front can actually lead to unhappiness.<\/p>\n

Think about it. \u00a0If you knew that you weren’t going to meet your spouse for another 5 years… you’d go crazy waiting! \u00a0You’d already know that everyone one you met between now and then weren’t\u00a0the one<\/em>, so you wouldn’t enjoy spending time with them and that’s only if you gave them the time of day in the first place! \u00a0Or if you knew you were going to be fired from a job in the future, you’d have zero motivation to do a good job in the here and now.<\/p>\n

Of course, some might say, but at least you could know if you were going to get sick or die at a certain age… to which I say, why should that matter? \u00a0Honestly, if you would live your life differently knowing you were going to become ill or pass away soon… perhaps more honestly, bravely or boldly… then why wait? \u00a0Shouldn’t you already be living your life that way anyway?<\/p>\n

Sure, it’s a nice daydream to have once in awhile – a glimpse into your own future. \u00a0But the reality of life is we\u00a0don’t know<\/em> what’s coming, good or bad. \u00a0And that’s what makes it so exciting.<\/p>\n

So expect the best. \u00a0Live in the present. \u00a0Don’t feel guilty about the past or worry about the future.<\/p>\n

Life is about NOW.<\/p>\n

So go out and live it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Since I decided not to have cable TV in my tiny house, I have been using Hulu for my nightly relaxation\/entertainment. \u00a0And since Hulu has all of the “old” shows on it… I recently found myself watching Felicity over again from the very beginning through to the season finale. \u00a0I used to LOVE that show…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":589,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[375,372,181,370,265,125,366,368,367,373,167,182,371,126,264,141,376,149,364,164,374,183,124,219,362,363,120,341,369,365],"class_list":["post-165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-ben","tag-binge-watching","tag-decisions","tag-dvr","tag-encourage","tag-encouragement","tag-episode","tag-episode-guide","tag-episodes","tag-felicity","tag-future","tag-goals","tag-hulu","tag-inspiration","tag-inspire","tag-life","tag-life-decisions","tag-life-lessons","tag-live","tag-living","tag-noel","tag-plans","tag-positive-thinking","tag-purpose","tag-purpose-of-life","tag-spiritual","tag-spiritual-health","tag-spirituality","tag-tv","tag-unknown"],"yoast_head":"\nYour Life Episode Guide - 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