Beloved, it may well be true that the world is too much with you. You may be over-extending yourself. When you are doing more than you can comfortably accommodate, take some deep breaths. I ask you kindly – who is it who assigns an overload of work to you?

Why do you insist that you must get everything done or that you are in some kind of jeopardy? How high do you set the dial? What are the consequences you pay? Who says you must do all you set out to do and accomplish it at break-neck speed? Who is it who imposes this on you? Ah, it is a good guess it is you, Beloved.

What race is it exactly you must run? Who has set such limits on you? Who has to give you a break, and who believes you have more energy and whip yourself into shape? Are you worn out, or is being worn out an idea that you embrace? Dear Heart, must so much energy go into self-talk that takes energy away from you?

Who is it who makes your work easy or says you work too hard? Who is it who submits you to over-weaning pressure?

You deeply want to be someone who is cool, calm, and collected, yet you tend to evaluate yourself as wanting and rushing. It must be you who sketches yourself as the summation of someone who drags and pulls too great a load. You make a pronouncement that you have too much to do. You say so. You insist so. And who tries to whip you into shape? I daresay this is also you.

I would love to divest you of a too heavy a load. It has been said that attitude is everything. I see the point. And so you see awareness of the truth of this.

Certainly, attitude is a lot of life. How you see life matters. You tell yourself you walk on air or that you are put upon or not. Who but you decides how the dice are thrown and what they will lead to?

One friend expresses his gratitude truthfully as he leads himself to see it. He says he lives in the nicest place, has the nicest friends. Here I am, he says, and how lucky I am. He announces his life to himself regardless and leaves out the unenjoyable pieces. And so it is.

Here is something you can do to uplift and to balance the world, and this is simply to no longer feel sorry for yourself. Do this. You have done it. You have seen others do this as well.

I, God, observed a man who had what is called a long and painful fatal illness, and yet, when someone came to tend to him or a friend or relative came to visit him, he is interested in what is going on in his friends' lives and not in describing the pain he is in. He leaves out his tales of woe.

I do not tend to suggest that you put your life aside and put others’ happiness routinely before your own as if in a sacrifice, yet there may well be times when this idea has a place in your life. Just go ahead and give your thoughts to consider others.

This kind man was not being self-sacrificing. While he was alive and could make life easier for another to whatever degree he could, this is exactly what he wanted to do. And so he did.