By David Magallanes / Guest contributor
I look around my home now and see devastation. But this is good. It means my remodel project has finally begun. But as I look around sometimes, I catch myself asking, “What have I done?”
No, I’m not doing it myself. I admire the guys like my late brother-in-law who could swing a hammer and have it come down where it’s supposed to. I may know some math, but these guys are masters at making geometrical shapes and measuring with precision. I secretly envy them. Well, I guess it’s no longer a secret.
The master bathroom has been ripped out and I’m beginning to see a beautiful pattern of stone tile taking form in the shower. I’m told that the worst is yet to come. We haven’t even touched the kitchen yet. When the contractors finally do storm the kitchen, I will be essentially camping in my own home.
But I can handle that. When I was going through my divorce many years ago, I was renting rooms, living in garages, motels, attics and cheap apartments. Even in my upcoming tribulations with the kitchen, I will still live like a rich man, compared to most of the world.
The objective of all this sacrifice, of course, is to end up living in a home that I’m proud of, into which I’m not embarrassed to invite people over. I deserve this. I’ve worked hard for many years. The end result will be a beautiful living space.
But what about our lives? Do we ever think of remodeling the very essence of our lifestyle? And I don’t mean tweaks here and some minor adjustments there. I’m talking about ripping out the old stuff, discarding it in the landfill, sacrificing time, money and comfort, and then gradually seeing a transformation unfold before our very eyes and those of the guests that we invite into our lives.
We’ve all “remodeled” our lives in one form or another: going to college, marrying, touring another part of the world. But we often come back to the same problems, the same issues, which means we never did “rip out the old stuff.” That requires a fundamental change, starting with our thinking. If we’ve been poor or economically “OK,” but aspire to affluence, then we need to remodel. If we feel that we are spiritually poor and wish to gain enlightenment, then we must remodel. If our lives are in chaos and we desire peace, then we must call in the contractors (i.e., possibly the “counselors” in this case), and rebuild our lives from the ground up.
It’s up to us, and us alone as individuals. Remodeling is messy, expensive, stressful and time-consuming. But as in all remodel jobs properly executed, we’ll be so happy with the outcome.
— David Magallanes is the creator of his own enterprise, Real World Projects, a business primarily dedicated to building distribution outlets for highly reputable products that offer a healthier life and a more vibrant lifestyle. An emerging branch of Real World Projects is Edifiquemos, a Spanish language enterprise dedicated to teaching the Spanish-speaking how to create a profitable international (U.S./Mexico) enterprise with low investment and high earning potential. David may be available for speaking opportunities. To contact him and for more information, you are invited to visit and explore his web sites at www.realworldprojects.info and at www.edifiquemos.com His e-mail is dmagallanes@RealWorldProjects.info