On Top

When things are going well we are often heard to say that we “are on top of the world”. If we are standing on the ground with clear air us, we are of course “standing on top of the world". The world is round, well almost, and therefore simply there is no top or bottom. Yes I know that the experts say the North Pole is the top and the South Pole is at the bottom but if someone, way back when, had reserved that order; Australia would have been on the top of the world and not “the land down under”. Now please don’t get upset and tell me I’m talking a lot of rot. I agree.

What do we generally mean when we say we are on top of the world? We are usually feeling good, excited, happy, pleased and good about ourselves or things that are happening. Each day there are things that happen to make us feel better than average and we tell ourselves that they put us on top of the world. There are also things that make us feel bad, depressed and lonely. In some cases how we feel will be determined by how we react. But sometimes the events will determine how we feel; illness, grief and exhaustion will never make us feel on top of the world.

Paul was able to say: “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.” Philippians 4:11 I’m certainly not able to say the same thing yet. When bad things happen, I try to stay calm. It took me a long time and many conversations with my mother, to learn how to do that much but I am still working on getting on top of it.