Letting go of that which no longer serves

If your world seems dark and dreary, it is. If things appear ugly and hate filled, they are. If you find people annoying, bitter, jaded, etc. they are. Or are they? Or is it? Can you look at another human being and see the light in them, or do you only see their dark? Have you looked in the mirror lately? Do you like what you see? If not, why? Could that be why the world around you seems so awful and ugly? Or is it why you look around and smile at what you see?

If you wake up in the morning grateful for another day, happy to see the sun, happy to go about your daily routine, is it because you are just lucky or blessed? Or have you made a conscious choice to be happy and see the joy and beauty in everything around you? 

We teeter totter back and forth from both of these perspectives many times throughout our day, most of us anyway. It’s difficult not to. It seems to take a concerted effort to decide to see the beauty and light all around you, rather than focusing on what brings you down. How do we get to that state of choosing to be happy and see beauty, and be grateful for every moment?

What I am discovering, is that it only takes a simple shift in awareness. A shift in what I choose to give my attention to. I slip. I slide. I tumble. I fall. But I get back up, I take a deep breath and I choose in that moment to be present. To be grateful. To say thank you to the universe for another moment to make a better choice of where to focus my energy, my intention.

The work of a healer is to heal thyself first, is it not? I am a healer. I can give everything I’ve got to others, neglecting my own needs, or I can love myself first, dig deep into the recesses of my being, where I have stuffed all of my inner resentment, anger, fear, unforgiveness, self loathing, and give my inner wounded being (child) the love she needs, tell her she is safe, beautiful, brave, strong, etc. and finally let go of all of that which has been holding me back. Time to uproot myself from the pot that has grown too small, untangle the roots, shake out the rot, and move into a larger, more spacious pot with fresh soil, clean water, and room to breathe. That is what I am choosing today. What will you choose?