Hi there, I hope you had a good weekend. Valentines means different things to different people. I can make many jokes but that’s what facebook shares are for. I’m here tonight to talk to you about a quote I read last week.
“Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won't either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could.”
What does this mean? In my opinion it means life is about living. That can apply to you no matter the scenario. Most days, I have to remind myself to make the conscious decision that I will live today. It is easy to get caught up in life, caught up in the injustice, caught up in the drama. (Insert Van Wilder quote: It’s like a rocking chair, it gives you something to do but you never actually go anywhere.)
If I’ve learned anything in the last 6 years it is that life can pass you by and that fateful day when I woke up I asked myself, “Where did the time go?” The answer is, well life kept going. There is a peaceful assurance in that; the universe keeps on being, plants continue to grow and that breathe of life is still there waiting for you. I woke up in October of 2014 from an abusive relationship and I made a choice that seemed to boggle some but it made perfect sense. What do I do now? I will live! I suppose I could’ve dove into a bottle but that’s not living, that’s escaping. I had two little boys to think of. We celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas with my family then I jumped feet first into a new life. I found help for myself and my boys. I hit the ground running and I'm still running after what I want from life.
And it’s true life isn’t meant to live alone. If you’re like me you need your recharge/zen time to center yourself but life is about interactions. We are a social species. I fought my basic instincts when I let myself be isolated away from family and friends. Without those relationships life can feel like you’re at sea: hectic, distracting, beautiful, powerful, free ,chaotic, energetic but it can also swallow you up nearly drown you and slap you against a submerged rock. Support is important, without my supports I wouldn’t be nearly so far down the road to healing as I am. Let’s face it, it’s much more fun to hit the Deadpool premiere with friends that it is alone though Deadpool was awesome in any case. :)
It’s not easy, I’m not telling you it is. I’ve had many struggles in the last year and a half but here’s a little secret: No matter what the problem is/ the day is like, it is always better than the life I had before. You know the best part? It’s that I can make tomorrow even better then today was. Can I change the world? That’s a big negative but I can choose how I react to the world. There’s an empowerment in that decision and it makes all the difference to my perception and attitude. Look inward and outward, take back the control of your life. You’re only having a bad day and crabby because you choose to, not because the boys tried to dive off the the couch and the wailing mass of limbs are now kicking each other, after all they found by experiment that gravity and acceleration laws are real. I have tons of these examples..seriously...
My sister is a great example of this point: My youngest niece is under 2 and full of energy and righteous indignant fury when riled. My sister was at the store with her mid tantrum and my sister was laughing instead of the normal reaction of frustration most parents have at that point. The store clerk gave my niece a balloon all the while surprised by my sisters reaction.
You can’t control everything in your life, no one can, but you can control how you react, how you handle the situation. Laugh at absurdity, laugh at life and smile like you mean it. Don’t give life or others power over you and your emotions, take back the power! It’s a great feeling, try it for a week and see for yourself! :)
No comments:
Post a Comment