“You cannot travel the path until you have become the path.” – Buddha
Over many conversations and exchange of ideas with friends, the focus invariably changes to one’s purpose on our life’s journey. Through the many tangled twists and turns that our lives continually take, discerning how to proceed when we find ourselves immersed in the quagmire of choice, decision, responsibililty and accountability reflects at times, overwhelming expectations of the demands we place on our immediate personal judgment. How then are we to choose wisely at any given juncture in our lives, only to realize later how those choices shaped or impacted that individual we have become? For each of us in every circumstance, the process of personal choice . . . is using the information we have in the moment, processing authentically through our integrity, character, and truth what we believe is the best solution/resolution for all concerned without regret, or question and move forward. We make decisions not based on conditional intelligence, but using wisdom through our instincts, intuition, experience and faith which in the last analysis, serves a purpose greater than ourselves.
As reflected in his book The Christmas Sweater Glenn Beck states, “When you choose the path, you choose the destination, all journeys for good or evil, begin with one small step.” Wisdom comes to us after we realize our intelligence has failed and understanding becomes a reality. . . as reflected by Glenn Beck, “… Far too many of us waste our lives standing in that darkness and cold because we can’t put our past behind us and take that first step into the unknown. We either don’t know, or don’t believe, that there is beauty and happiness for us just on the other side of fear.” Is your intelligence blocking your wisdom to beauty, happiness and love because of what you believe is failure blocked by fear? Facing ourselves and our fears takes courage . . . of course, but it also takes wisdom beyond our constructed limitations. Have you convinced yourself that you are worthy of only a certain level of happiness and joy? Have you become extremely comfortable in your misery/depression because it is what you know? When you look into a mirror . . . what reflection do you see?
At some time along this journey we all experience in life, it is beyond important to embrace the ability to forgive. First it is imperative to forgive ourselves for the mistakes, regrets, failures etc., then to forgive everyone else without exception . . . for those who have deeply hurt us have been our greatest teachers. When we “see with the eyes behind our eyes,” healing can begin incremently, embracing wisdom, releasing regret, disappointment, pain, suffering, disillusion, anger, bitterness and hostility, while understanding the greatest potential that has come to fruition . . . our personal happiness, joy and love . . . which is our fundamental truth. JLR