Sounds like a bedtime story…and in a way, it is, because it is familiar and close to the heart for many of us.
I am reading a Louise Hay book (called The Power is Within You) and in it she quotes someone wise who once said ‘You can choose to be happy or you can choose to be right.‘ Yikes!
We all have situations in which we feel we are so undeniably, justifiably right that we hang on to that conviction at the expense of our own peace of mind. Forgiveness is a word that is bantered around a lot in personal development circles, and I am aware that to forgive someone else is really to let go of something in my own mind, but when I read that sentence it just rang alarm bells in my head. Why, I wonder?…The thought of letting go of the anger and resentment I feel towards my ‘person’ is very difficult, especially when their behaviour affects my life and daughter’s very deeply, and I feel it is totally inappropriate and hurtful. Just listen to all that judgement! I know very well that I cannot change another person’s behaviour and should only look to my own reactions, however it is certainly a case of ‘easier said than done’. The sentence about choosing happiness really got my juices going, because maybe I somehow believe that to decide to be happy anyway means I am condoning the behaviour of this other person rather than dealing with it…hmmm….so yes, I can choose to focus on my vision of the yacht pulling up to a pier in Monaco (water gently slapping against the dock, sparkling in the sun…white boat gleaming, cool breeze, shopping and lunch…mmmm) but when I get back to reality I still feel ‘rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr’.
I also know that because there is such emotion here, there exists a huge opportunity to grow past it and enjoy new clarity and peace of mind. I do indeed value my peace of mind highly and also want to be happy, but this ‘person’ really knows how to push my buttons (code for I still have issues here – inside of myself). Rrrrrrrrrr….
Some tricks I am trying are a) acceptance of things just the way they are, b) to attempt to see the situation form the other’s point of view (with the underlying thought that we all do our best given our own set of beliefs and skills), and c) to focus on the end result that I DO want…
I feel better already. I must keep trying, as I’m sure you will agree that it’s really none of our business how other people act, and that to minimize the impact on ourselves is a valuable skill to cultivate.
Have a great day!
Tags: ;aw of attraction, being open, being right, choose to be happy, louise hay, Personal Development, personal power, stubborness
