Thursday, January 23, 2014

Thoughts on a Thursday Morning

 

 

This picture came across my News Feed on Facebook Monday and it struck a nerve that needed to be scratched. So many people could benefit from reading and then living the things the person took the time to write about in this one little meme.

1. Make peace with your past. It doesn't matter what your past was, it's the past. If you continue to drag it around with you, there will never be an opportunity for you to learn and grow. I've learned to put things from my past in a little black box (figuratively), close it up and put it way up high on the very top most shelf, way in the back of my closet. That way I really have to dig if I want to pull it out again for what ever reason. Once it's on that top shelf, way in the back darkest corner, I can usually forget about the issue and move on away from it.

2. What other people think of you is none of your business. I used to hate not knowing what people thought of me or what they were saying about me. That was one of the biggest insecurities I had to deal with in order to move on and continue to grow. I wanted to please everyone no matter the situation and this just took away from my ability to please me. So, I stopped worrying and started living in the here and now.

3. Time heals almost everything.  TRUTH! My Mother passed away on October 27, 2012 and it's still difficult for me to deal with. It does get a bit easier as each day goes by, and I work at getting over the issues surrounding her memorial and subsequent disregard for the things I *know* she wanted done after her passing. She had a will, I never saw it, but I KNOW what she told me and those things never happened. At any rate, most of the time I can readily move on away from things and allow the healing process to begin, some are easier than others and the rate of healing is different with each person and situation. Time will help to heal most things...

4. No one is in charge of your happiness except you. This fact is brought home to me on a regular basis. This in some ways goes back to my wanting to please everyone, and finally realizing I can't, so STOP trying. It takes a very strong person to admit their insecurities, and then determine the path to travel so as not to fall back into the traps of the every day walk of life. I struggle each day, but I also become stronger each day. If I falter, I reach out to those who I have learned to trust, count on not to kick me when I'm down and pull up my big girl panties and keep stepping.

5. Don't compare your life to others and don't judge them, you have no idea what their journey is all about. Even though we as humans have the inbred sense to look at something and more times than not see what we perceive to be a better situation, I found it's always better to step back if possible and look at things from more than one angle. My life is just that...MY life. No one else know who I am or why I do the things I do. Just as I don't know what goes on in my neighbor's house. Thankfully, by realizing this one aspect, I have been able to curb the *reflex* to judge those I may feel are different and live differently than I expect them to live.

6. Stop thinking too much, it's alright to not know the answers, they come to you when you least expect it. Oh my! How true is this in my life!!! I want to be a know it all, but I learned long ago that I am not nor will I ever be. I don't have all the answers and the more I search for an answer, the more elusive it becomes. So, yes, I've learned to slow down and let things come to me in their own time. This was the MOST difficult lesson I've had to learn and embrace. After all, having a badger for your main totem is proof positive that you are tenacious and don't give up easily.

7. Smile. You don't own all the problems in the world. It is so much easier to smile than to frown, but most people would rather eat dirt than to give a smile to someone in passing. Try it sometime, just randomly smile at someone instead of scowling and see if your light doesn't shine just a little brighter. No one else may notice and that's OK, YOU will know and YOU will feel so much better for having done such a small random act.