MANAGING THE TRAJECTORY OF YOUR LIFE!

Webster's definition of "trajectory":
"A path, progression, or line of development resembling a physical trajectory."

Not this Webster. This is Emmanuel Lewis, who played Webster in a 1980's TV sitcom. I meant the dictionary.

The word, "trajectory," used in a sentence: The path of a projectile is called its trajectory.

A familiar example of a trajectory is the path a baseball takes as it is thrown.

A less familiar example, from a Stooltime Counseling perspective, is the path one's life takes as projectiles are thrown at it.

The inspiration for this article comes from my FaceBook friend, Sandy, who asked me to comment on a picture she posted:

Here were my responses:

I liked JFK, who also said, "Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country." Those sounded like conservative values for a president who was a democrat.

Also, I think it is a person's circumstances and personal choices that determine if someone is going to be poor or not. We live in a country that affords tremendous opportunities for people who want to go after them. Trajectories like a poor education, drug addiction or living in a multi-level dysfunctional family don't help, but can be overcome to increase one's chances of prospering. At least the opportunity to do it is greater in America than anywhere else, in my opinion. All people are created equal; what happens after that is a personal choice.

Social justice seems to be geared toward everybody being equal. While we are all equal in the eyes of our Creator, after we're born we all make choices that differentiate us from one another. Living with our choices then becomes the hard part, whether we're rich or poor.

Professional Opinion:
The paths of a poor education, drug addiction or living in a multi-level dysfunctional family do not need to remain as barriers to realizing one's human potential. There is help to explore, understand and change one's path in life so it can feel more satisfying.

If lack of satisfaction with life is based on: 1) Receiving no education or poor education, 2) Being addicted to drugs, or 3) Coming from a family that has traumatized you by way of abuse or neglect, it is time to stop the vicious cycle. In the 21st century, there is no need to pass on generational lifestyles like these. Rather, it is time to become empowered, based on making some different choices and decisions.

Much poverty in America is based on the above three examples. Having a disability can also contribute to living in poverty, based on statistics from the Department of Human Services and Social Security Administration, but for the purpose of this article, I want to focus on poor education, drug addiction and coming from a multi-level dysfunctional family.

To be continued ...

Written by,
Mark Rogers, LPC.
Licensed Professional Counselor
(2/12).