Find The Love Of The Gods In This Room

See everything before you as an opportunity to experience the wonder of the Gods, is something I have always said, but it can be far harder than one might imagine, especially if we don't like the situation we are in. But in said situation, the Gods may teach us more than we could have conceived.

Most of the jobs I've had in my life, I have considered at least beneath me, if not outright hated. Even if I tried to find the good in them, it seemed impossible ultimately. Once I had a job at a local McDonald's just so that I could pay my debts, in the face of my hold job that I had held for 5 years, but that had basically stopped paying its workers. The feeling of being betrayed doesn't even begin to describe it, spending years on the false hope they promoted that you could make it as an independent contractor. It ended with my vehicle destroyed and bank account emptied, so it would have been ridiculous to expect me to feel good about nabbing the first job I could find as a security net.

Then one day, something said to me, "Find the love of the Gods in this kitchen you're working in." In this job I hated, something Higher wanted me to seek to find Divine love. I wondered how in the world I would accomplish such a task. Nevertheless, I sought to obey, of course. I was clearly trying to be taught something. But although I tried and tried, I could never find it. 

Soon I went to my next job across the street at the travel center, or gas station in laymen's terms. More pay, and apparently, less stress, appealed to me greatly (although the less stress part was a foolish thing to assume). But as a customer, I had indeed enjoyed the atmosphere of the place. As I would soon find, experiencing it as an employee is a world different, and I did not like it. However, the mission given to me was still in my head, to find the love of the Gods in this place I couldn't stand.

For months, I once again went on this journey in failure. Then I talked to my wife, who is a Hellenic Oracle. I did not go to her with this question or mission in mind, but we talked frequently about how much I hated my job. She one day said to me that I help keep the world moving, that without gas stations, everything would literally stop. The world that the Gods love, I help keep moving forward, as far as humanity is concerned, and therefore, I am working for the good of my Polis (City).

That's when I found the love of the Gods even in an undesirable job. I still didn't love my job, but it still changed my attitude about my future jobs and endeavors, whatever they may be in the future. To find wisdom, purpose and achievement is the point in all your journeys.

In the Goodness of the Gods,

I'll see you at the next Herm down the road,

Chris Aldridge.

Are You Working For What You Can Own?

In the ancient Maxims of Delphi at number 79, you will find the words, work for what you can own. On the surface, a lot of people might interpret it to mean, be self-employed, that to work for someone else is to be subjected to limited potential, and the attainment of only what that person wants you to have. Thus, you are not being the best version of yourself.

However, I think the Maxim means something far more deeply rooted in the human experience. It means to be fulfilled by your work. Your goal should be to work in a field that you enjoy, not hate. That pays you a living, not exploits you. And that you can feel a sense of purpose and even pride out of.

Self-employment can most certainly bring someone to these ends, but it is not the only road to them. It's possible to be self-employed and be miserable and unproductive. I know because I spent five years as an Independent Contractor, trying everything under the sun to make the job work, and it never did. I was overworked and financially broke when I decided that it wasn't worth it and something else had to be done if I was ever going to make any kind of living.

Since graduating high school in 2004, I have had at least 26 different jobs, and only recently did I finally obtain one that I liked, could keep, and that paid me a living wage. It was at this latter time that I truly came to understand the meaning of working for what you can own. It means to own everything about your work, like your financial stability, happiness and purpose. A slave, in any regard, is not working for what they can own.

Some people might say that having 26 different jobs throughout your life is reckless or even immature, especially if you left most of them because you quit or wanted to do something else. But it shows that, sometimes, you have to be willing to travel though roads, and not be content with unhappiness and neutrality, if you are to ever achieve the things you want out of life. You will find greater things along the way that you otherwise would not have.

In the Goodness of the Gods,

I'll see you at the next Herm down the road,

Chris Aldridge.