October 23
I can honor my feelings, even when they aren’t pretty.
Some days I am peaceful and grateful. Other days I am angry, overwhelmed, resistant, doubtful, or deeply tired of what is happening around me.
Those days belong to my life too.
I don’t have to resist my resistance. I can notice it. I can notice the anger, the frustration, the grief, the urge to run or hide, the thoughts spinning in search of an answer. I can stop fighting the moment long enough to experience what is actually here.
Experiencing a feeling does not mean I have to act from it. Anger can be here without making my decisions. Doubt can be here, and I can still trust myself. Resistance can be here without becoming another thing I need to fix. I don't need to force my way through uncomfortable emotions.
Acceptance works much the same way. Acceptance of what is does not require acceptance of what is not okay for me. I can see a situation or person as they are without convincing myself that I have to like it, tolerate harmful behavior, or remain in circumstances that are not right for me.
Sometimes acceptance is what allows me to stop fighting reality long enough to hear myself clearly.
And then I can remember: I have choices today.
I can choose one small thing that helps me return to myself. Take a walk. Write until the feelings have somewhere to go. Cry. Use the tools I have been guided to. Cut cords. Imagine a protective bubble around myself. Reach for Spirit. Ask for support. Find enough quiet to hear my own voice again.
None of these things require the feeling to disappear. They help me stay with myself while I move through it.
And when my mind is trying to solve my life, I can remember to notice the life that is happening.
A person I love sitting beside me. A hug. A pine tree. A heart on my path. The sky. A quiet moment. The presence of Spirit. Something beautiful that does not solve the problem and does not need to.
Life is not always easy. I do not need to make it harder by fighting myself for how I experience it, or by fighting my way through it. I can open my heart to Spirit to be filled with love.
I can loosen my grip on what is not mine to control. I can honor what is true. I can make a choice when a choice is mine to make.
And I can keep returning to myself.
Grounding questions:
What am I feeling right now, including the parts that aren’t pretty?
Where am I resisting my own experience?
What small choice could help me return to myself today?
