In a world where negativity is chased down, magnified, and broadcasted to the world, while positivity is obscured and buried, it can be difficult to see the potential for good that should prosper and thrive. Why is it that people are so captivated by dark events that they fail to capture the sparks that can grow and illuminate our world with brilliant light and hope? There will always be dark events to capture the headlines, but we should always remember that for every evil we are shown, there is also potential for good. Potential is possibility—the greatness that our world, and we as individuals are capable of fulfilling if we are willing to see and believe in a brighter future of possibilities. Potential is what we are capable of attaining if we are able to discover the light that is hidden among the darkness.

Seeing Through the Darkness
Potential is within each of us, but we must search for it with hope and faith, with the willingness to cling to it when we find it. Much of the darkness we see daily in life is real, but so also is the immense potential for good. Life is not limited to the narrow visions of darkness that are displayed in the media; it can be much more about the personal aspirations for good that exist in the world, but are not advertised. It is your knowledge and choices that allow you to discover your potential, and when you do, you will find that the only limitation of your potential is the number of your breaths.

It is far too easy to be caught up in the bad news that is broadcasted daily, striking us from almost every direction, and to lose sight of the many options and possibilities that are available to us. Bad news is a majority of what we see in the media, because bad news sells. Unfortunate though it may be, people do not pay as much attention to good news as they do to bad. It is the shock value that captivates people, acting upon fear, disgust, horror, and disturbing emotions. It is up to each of us to realize that all of this is only half of the story of reality, and that we can make ourselves and our world what we want it to be, as long as we are willing to believe in and strive to achieve our tremendous potential for good.

Discovering Our Potential
Potential is both a matter of things we know we are capable of doing and things that become possible as we discover and believe in them. We all develop routines in our lives that allow us to operate within a scope of practices and actions that are familiar and in some ways repetitive. Most people wake up at a certain time, go to work, return home, and use the few remaining evening hours to enjoy a meal and relax before heading to bed. These are the tasks that give our lives a foundation of stability that we cling to, because they are what we come to perceive and accept as normality. We have all arrived at the point where we are now in our lives by pursuing various discoveries of potential that we have chosen to pursue, but for most of us, the discoveries of our potential now lie dormant and we work in a realm that is familiar and stable, because it is the path we have chosen and accepted in our lives.

Beyond the Norm
While we have arrived at the point of our current circumstances in life by choice and according to unique aspects of our potential, there also exist further possibilities of potential that can open new and exciting challenges and opportunities for good that we may not have yet discovered, and which can enhance our lives as well as those of others. It is important and essential to establish routines in our lives that provide us stability, but it is vital to our growth and to the fulfillment of our potential to continue to keep our eyes open to new ways to utilize talents, skills, and abilities that we are capable of, but may not yet have discovered or developed to their fullest capacity. We should never assume that because we have found certain niches in life in which to apply ourselves to, that we have discovered the fullness of our potential, or that there is nothing further to which we should aspire. We must continually open our minds to possibilities that will help us to see beyond the darkness, the glowing sparks of potential that we can nurture into brilliant, living flames.

Shining a Light
There are possibilities for each of us in aspects of our lives that we may be scarcely aware of, or have not even discovered yet. While we have surely accomplished great things to get where we are today, there are many aspects of our potential that are awaiting our discovery—waiting for us to venture out beyond the darkness with which we are presented and to fan the flames of light. We must be willing to try new things. We must expand our inquisitiveness to reach out and open new doors, despite the fears and darkness that have long overshadowed them. We must be willing to face disappointment and failure as we search among the darkness, because not every door will lead us to the light that we seek, but as we continue to move beyond our fears, we will discover the doors of our untapped potential, and in opening them we will provide greater light and good that will brighten a world of darkness.

May we not be stifled by the darkness with which we are presented in the world. Though darkness is the commodity most readily available, it has no dominion over the flames that we hold high as we unleash the fuels of our potential. With every small spark that we build into flame, we diminish the prevalence of darkness and increase the color and brilliance that are available to the world. It is through our resolve to discover and fulfill the great power and possibilities of our potential that we can replace the darkness of our world with goodness and light. Let us discover our potential as individuals, as families, and as a world to bring greater good and light to the lives of all.

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Controlling Thoughts: Mastering our Minds and Thoughts: We evaluate ourselves based on things we do, finding joy and regret in actions, while scarcely noticing that the driving force behind them is our thoughts.

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