I have been reciting the Serenity prayer at least twice a week for almost 6 months now, as a part of my own sobriety. I was thinking about the final stanza of the first portion of this prayer this morning as I hopped on my motorcycle and rode into the office today; having the . . . wisdom to know the difference. I have been questioning how much longer I can keep this search going with one disappointment after another. I never knew there was a second part to this prayer, but I looked it up this morning just because I was curious about this prayer that had been running through my head all morning . . . interesting for a man who struggles with the whole idea of god. Part of that second half reads, Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace. That sounded strange when I first read it and has been bouncing around my head since reading it earlier. I guess if I allow myself to stand back from my own narrow view, my own simple hardship and see those around me, I can see how this hardship of my own has put me in touch with so many others who have been in the midst of their own difficulties. I have an amazing beautiful friend, who in the last month and a half, has been undergoing chemotherapy; this less than a year after losing her close friend to this disease, also the wife of a close friend of mine. Despite her own battle with this cancer driven need for serenity, she has checked in on my search for Fats every day. The search for Fats has lead me to the doorstep of others who are in the grips of their own demons, battling addiction, poverty and homelessness. Many who have been open to offer their own help and comfort in my search. There have been two other friends (my brothers wife being one of them) who offered up their help or support, who have lost their own pets during this last three weeks. And my own roommate who lost his uncle just this weekend. I am starting to think that the reason for Fats search becoming so viral, is the need that others have to see something good happen in this world, like seeing a beloved pet or friend reunited with his best friend, when there are so many other things out there that seem out of our control, like cancer or the death of a friend or family member or even addiction and homelessness. When this started out I had no idea I would be sitting here more than three weeks later no closer to finding him than I was when I turned around and he had vanished. But it has brought me closer to so many others in the process. I am not sure if I will ever see my crazy pup again. I know I will not stop looking at the end of my bed expecting to see his big body spread across the covers or thinking about him kicking me from the end of the couch, but I do know that he has touched far more people in this last three weeks than I imagined possible. I want with all my being to have a happy story to share with all of you about my buddy returning home and feel bad when I share my own frailty and weakness with the process, but I believe that whether or not there is a divine creator orchestrating things like this or not, there is definitely a human spirit that allows us to reach out and give a helping hand to those around us when they are suffering. If that isnt god at work I dont know what is. So I will try to be more open to the Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace over the coming weeks. Here is my own version of Reinhold Niebuhrs Serenity prayer: Please give me grace to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, and the Wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time, Enjoying one moment at a time, Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace, taking this world as it is, not as I would have it, humbly allowing others to help me along this path trusting that life will work out in time surrendering my grip over each aspect of life freeing me to truly LIVE life and not merely exist
Posted on: Tue, 03 Jun 2014 21:29:22 +0000
Trending Topics
© 2015