Sometimes, when blessed, a time comes in your life when you finally get it...when, in the midst of all your fears and insanity, you stop dead in your tracks and somewhere the voice inside your head cries out - ENOUGH! Enough fighting and crying or struggling to hold on. You awaken to the fact that you are not perfect and that not everyone will always love, appreciate or approve of who or what you are ... and thats OK. They are entitled to their own views and opinions. You learn the importance of loving and championing yourself...and in the process a sense of new-found confidence is born of self-approval. You stop judging and pointing fingers and you begin to accept people as they are and to overlook their shortcomings and human frailties and in the process a sense of peace and contentment is born of forgiveness. You realize that much of the way you view yourself, and the world around you, is as a result of all the messages and opinions that have been ingrained into your psyche. You begin to sift through all the junk youve been fed about how you should behave, how you should look, how much you should weigh, what you should wear, what you should do for a living, how much money you should make, what you should drive, how and where you should live, who you should marry, the importance of having and raising children, and what you owe your parents, family, and friends. You learn to open up to new worlds and different points of view. And you begin reassessing and redefining who you are and what you really stand for. You learn the difference between wanting and needing and you begin to discard the doctrines and values youve outgrown, or should never have bought into to begin with ... and in the process you learn to go with your instincts. You learn that it is truly in giving that we receive. And that there is power and glory in creating and contributing and you stop maneuvering through life merely as a consumer looking for your next fix. You learn that principles such as honesty and integrity are not the outdated ideals of a bygone era but the mortar that holds together the foundation upon which you must build a life. You learn that you dont know everything, its not your job to save the world and that you cant teach a pig to sing. You learn to distinguish between guilt and responsibility and the importance of setting boundaries and learning to say NO. You learn that the only cross to bear is the one you choose to carry and that martyrs get burned at the stake. Then you learn about love. How to love, how much to give in love, when to stop giving and when to walk away. You learn to look at relationships as they really are and not as you would have them be. You stop trying to control people, situations and outcomes. And you learn that alone does not mean lonely. Many years ago I was on a self imposed Time Out from relationships with women. A twelve month period where I was seeking to be a better person. One day I threw a little tantrum telling friend, Im lonely! His response still rings in my ears..... Your not lonely, your just frisky. He continued, you have so many people that love you David. Your children, your family, many friends and God. Since that day, I have never felt lonely. For that I am grateful. I believe that whenever we express gratitude we create positive energy that emanates out from us and returns to us as wonderful experiences. We become magnetic. Good things and good people gravitate toward us because we are such a joy and delight to be around. An attitude of gratitude is naturally attractive. It has the power to turn challenges into possibilities, problems into solutions, and losses into gains. It shifts the energy. It expands our vision and allows us to see what might normally be invisible to someone with a limiting (cranky) attitude. Gratitude is a prayer for goodness to abound. I feel the words “thank you” are two of the most beautiful words in our language. They can light up someone’s face and help the other person know that he or she is appreciated. It opens the doors to our hearts and allows us to feel connected. My experience is, if we focus on the crap and we get more crap. Focus on what we are grateful for and we experience more things to be grateful for.... Let’s spend as many moments as we can every day being grateful for all the good that’s in our lives. David Sprague
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 15:54:58 +0000
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