This isn’t a video you should watch, this is a video you need to watch:
Okay, now that you have probably cried your eyes out (and if you haven’t, you might want to check your body for a pulse), let’s talk about this video and how this applies to living the strenuous life.
Keeping love in your life
Everyone hopes that they will have a legendary love in life, but what are you doing to make sure this happens? Forget fate and divine intervention and all those other excuses and let’s focus on you for a minute.
What’s the reality of so many relationships? So many people either don’t even attempt to get someone they could love, or they do find them, get lazy and let them slip away which ends in a loveless marriage or a nasty divorce where everyone is bitter.
Think about Danny and Annie for a minute. Every morning she would wake up to a little love note from him. Could you imagine doing this? What about the morning after a big fight… would you still write a little love note, or would you walk around being enraged the rest of the day, writing snotty social media updates, and texting your friends every detail about your fight?
Obviously I can’t comment on every single relationship out there, but who would ever leave someone who wrote them a love note every single day? I don’t know about you, but I sure wouldn’t.
Most relationships out there end because both people give up. I meet far too many people who are so bitter about their relationship or their marriage. Some people get married because they settle, and some people get married for all the wrong reasons such as money. Don’t let this be you.
If you have found someone special, don’t become a lazy bum and just expect them to always be there. There is nothing that says that someone has to stay with you. If you don’t feel like your partner is showing they care about you, step up to the plate and do some gestures first. Don’t get sucked into the endless bitter cycle of blaming the other person for not caring, while they probably do the same thing. Make the first move. If they love you at all, they will reciprocate.
And what if you’re single? Well if you’re single, what are you doing to become someone worth dating? Nobody ever likes to hear that because we have all been told we were all special since we were given gold stars in Kindergarten for every damn thing we did. If you’re single, are you keeping yourself fit, growing your career, developing a hobby, and working on your character? Or are you going out and drinking away your sorrows at the nearest bar? You never know when you could meet your soul mate. Don’t you want to bring a lot to the table when you meet them or are you going to be a worthless human being with nothing to show? Which is going to get their interest? Think about that for a minute.
Finding happiness without money
Danny and Annie weren’t the richest people ever. They didn’t have a Lamborghini, a huge house, they weren’t famous in their lives by any means, but they found happiness, and there aren’t too many people who can say that.
If you took money out of your relationship, would you still be happy? If not, you need to rethink your values if you have any interest in living the strenuous life. The strenuous life is about finding internal happiness and finding joy in life with or without money. Someone living the strenuous life knows that a gold watch doesn’t bring joy, it’s the pursuit of worthwhile efforts that can put you in the position to buy that watch that makes life meaningful.
Coming to reality
We all have to come to grips with our own mortality. I say it over and over, but one day, all of this will end for you. Don’t you want to go out in a flame instead of letting that flame inside of you die way before you are actually dead?
Danny didn’t become complacent in his relationship to Annie. He kept on loving her and finding ways to show it every single day. He didn’t just marry her and then expected her to be there every single day while going about his routine.
Even as he neared the end of his life, he was okay with dying. He didn’t sound like a man with a lot of regrets about the way he loved his wife and she sounded just as honored to have a love with him throughout all those years. He proudly lived the strenuous life and she did right along with him.
Don’t you want to be someone who stares death in the face and looks back and has the peace of mind that they wouldn’t change a damn thing?
I recently came across this post about a guy who admitted he blew his marriage. (Read it: here). He admits all the areas where he completely failed at keeping his marriage together. It was so incredibly brave of him to admit to his faults. That is a lot of raw honesty to put out on the internet! I’d suggest you take a look at it. If you’re in a relationship or married, it may be an eye-opener. If you’re single, make a note of this so you can have a legendary love and never lose it.
Because in the end, don’t we all just want to be like Danny and Annie?
The Strenuous Life Manifesto 