Where Is My Set of Instructions?

It doesn't exist

Rob and Bronton putting an IKEA table together, carefully following the instructions.

We recently bought a dining table with matching chairs from IKEA. This meant we had to assemble them ourselves, which we did with indispensable help from our son Bronton.

The parts for the table and chairs came in boxes, along with neat little plastic bags of washers, bolts, screws and tiny tools. And, thankfully, each box came with a Set of Instructions.

The Set of Instructions told us not only what to do, but what not to do. So, following them carefully, it wasn’t long before we had a stable table and six sturdy chairs to use in the new studio on our property.

As I sat on one of the newly assembled chairs at the newly assembled table sipping a coffee, I got to wondering about the fact that I didn’t come to this world with a Set of Instructions.

How much easier life would be if I had a series of steps to follow, with suitable tools supplied to ensure I complete each step successfully, along with warnings marked with a bold red X about what not to do, like IKEA products have.

Down through time many people have tried to write what could be regarded as a Set of Instructions for humans.

For example, there are complex spiritual books like the Bible and the Koran, but they’ve caused more problems than they’ve solved. The Bhagavat Gita recommends letting go of personal attachment. Aristotle wrote about the importance of ethics while the Stoics promoted virtue and reason as paramount. In A Search for Meaning, Viktor Frankl tells us that the key to life is to find our purpose. Eckhart Tolle zeroes in on the power of living in the Now, and Rumi suggests we meet him in the garden that is beyond right and wrong.

There isn’t one Set of Instructions that covers all situations, problems and dilemmas that cross our path almost daily. All we have are snippets to be going on with. Suggestions. Hints. Guides. Pointers.

I deduced from this that we don’t come with a Set of Instructions because we don’t need one. Instead, we have what the ancient Greek philosophers called Free Will with which we can find a safe and productive way through the maze of daily life if we really want to.

Of course, if we're so inclined, we can compile our own Set of Instructions, write them on an index card, and look at them from time to time. If I did, I think I’d write only two instructions:

• Be present.

• Be kind.

 That’s enough to be going on with.       

Bronton and Rob looking pleased with their efforts.

With love, Marlane