The Awakening...

The Awakening...

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

and blaming and struggling to hold on.

Then, like a child quieting down after

a tantrum, you blink back your tears

and begin to look at the world through

new eyes.

This is your awakening.

You realize it's time to stop hoping and

waiting for something to change, or for

happiness, safety and security to magically

appear over the next horizon.  You

realize that in the real world there aren't

always fairy tale endings, and that any

guarantee of "happily ever after" must

begin with you...and in the process a

sense of serenity is born of acceptance.

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 that's 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 complaining and blaming other

people for the things they did to you -

or didn't do for you - and you learn that

the only thing you can really count on is

the unexpected.

You learn that people don't always say

what they mean or mean what they say

and that not everyone will always be

there for you and that everything isn't

always about you.

So, you learn to stand on your own and

to take care of yourself...and in the

process a sense of safety and security

is born of self-reliance.

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 learn to open up to new worlds and

different points of view.  You begin

reassessing and redefining who you are

and what your really stand for.

You learn the difference between wanting

and needing and you begin to discard

the doctrines and values you've outgrown,

or should never have bought into to begin

with.

You learn 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 of a bygone era, but the

mortar that holds together the foundation

upon which you must build a life.

You learn that you don't know everything,

it's not your job to save the world and

that you can't teach a pig to sing.  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.  You learn to

look at relationships as they really are

and not as you would have them be.  You

learn that alone does not mean lonely.

You stop trying to control people, situations,

and outcomes.  You learn to distinguish

between guilt and responsibility and the

importance of setting boundaries and learning

to say NO.

You also stop working so hard at putting your

feelings aside, smoothing things over and

ignoring your needs.

You learn that your body really is your temple.

You begin to care for it and treat it with

respect.  You begin to eat a balanced diet,

drink more water, and take more time to

exercise.

You learn that being tired fuels doubt, fear,

and uncertainty and so you take more time

to rest.  And just as food fuels the body,

laughter fuels our soul.  So you take more

time to laugh and play.

You learn that, for the most part, you get

in life what you believe you deserve, and

that much of life truly is a self-fulfilling

prophecy.  You learn that anything worth

achieving is worth working for and that

wishing for something to happen is

different than working toward making it

happen.

More importantly, you learn that in order

to achieve success you need direction,

discipline and perseverance.  You also

learn that no one can do it all alone, and

that it's OK to risk asking for help.

You learn the only thing you must truly

fear is fear itself.  You learn to step

right into and through your fears because

you know that whatever happens you can

handle it and give in to fear to give away

the right to live life on your own terms.

You learn to fight for your life and not to

squander it living under a cloud of

impending doom.

You learn that life isn't always fair, you

don't always get what you think you

deserve and that sometimes bad things

happen to unsuspecting, good people...

and you learn not to take it personally.

You learn that nobody's punishing you

and that everything isn't always

sombody's fault.  It's just life happening.

You learn to admit when you are wrong

and to build bridges instead of walls.

You learn that negative feelings such

as anger, envy and resentment must be

understood and redirected or they will

suffocate the life out of you and poison

the universe that surrounds you.

You learn to be thankful and to take

comfort in many of the simple things we

take for granted, things that millions of

people upon the earth can only dream

about:  a full refrigerator, clean running

water, a soft warm bed, a long hot shower.

Then, you begin to take responsibility for

yourself by yourself and you make

yourself a promise to never betray yourself

and to never, ever, settle for less than your

heart's desire.

You make it a point to keep smiling, to

keep trusting, and to stay open to every

wonderful possibility.

You hang a windchime outside your window

so you can listen to the wind.

Finally, with courage in your heart, you

take a stand, you take a deep breath, and

you begin to design the life you want to

live as best you can.

~Author Unknown~

Yesterday late afternoon as I was going

through my file cabinet searching for

something, I pulled this up thinking it

was something else entirely.  Knowing

all things are synchronistic, I began to

read this once again.  It spoke volumes

to me once again.  So I thought I'd

share it once again, and once again

...I am Awakening.

A'Ho!