At this point in my life, I think just about all my activities fall into one of these five baskets: God, family, country, friends, and health.
A few observations about my choice of those five. First, I do think that four of them probably ought to be on nearly everyone’s short list: God, of course; family, unless you have lost them all (not impossible, alas, especially if you live long enough), or unless you have no real choice but to be estranged; friends, not just out of duty and for your own well-being but also because they are among those neighbors whom God tells us to love as we love ourselves; and health, which all of us need to pay some mind to, especially as we get older.
As for the remaining item, country: For many people their job has more urgency, and I should add that in my particular circumstance I always thought that my career/profession and my duty to country overlapped.
And should there be other baskets? Oh, I have no objection to people having other passions and interests: one or more of the arts, travel, sports, hobbies, etc. It’s up to you to decide if you think God is happy with your choices and how you prioritize them.
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But the reason for this blogpost is not primarily to urge you, dear reader, to adopt my particular baskets, though I hope that sharing my list of them here will be of some use to you — and might prompt some reflection.
No: The insight that hit me the other day and prompts this post is that I should not just be asking myself always what I need to be adding to each basket by my own actions — but that I should be reminding myself of how much each basket is adding to my own life. Consider: My relatively good health continues and enables me to enjoy so much; I live in the greatest country in the history of the world and am blessed with so much freedom; I have so many wonderful friends who add so much to my life; my wife and our son and his wife and children and my sisters and brother-in-law and nieces and nephews fill my heart — and, finally and most importantly, I am so blessed with so much by God! I try to give to each basket, yes, and I get so much back. Cast your bread upon the waters, indeed.
More broadly: When considering my duties, I should always consider as well how whomever/whatever I’m serving also has blessed me in some way. Gratitude is always worth cultivating. And I should remember that without duties, there can be no purpose or satisfaction in life.