A Gift to Yourself
We all know that in life, stuff happens, and that “stuff” can vary in size, scope and severity. Some things impact us more than others and sometimes things can be a real serious struggle. I have been there, and more importantly, so have you. You may even be there right now.
Last year, I learned three things that helped me come to terms with a difficult situation; it was a gift, so-to-speak, and today I would like to pass that gift on to you. The gift of A – F – G.
A - Acceptance
When my difficult situation arose, the little “justice judge” inside of me popped up saying, “This is not right! How you were treated was wrong!” Her voice was as strong as Judge Judy’s, but by letting my inner judge rail against the perceived wrongdoing, I was missing something – peace.
Eventually I came to see that the road to relief was in acceptance. By accepting the situation, accepting the past and accepting myself, I felt as though I had taken a long, deep breath. Acceptance doesn’t necessarily mean inaction (that depends on the situation), but acceptance gave me peace.
F - Forgiveness
In my difficult situation, forgiveness was important. I needed to forgive the offender for their wrongdoing, not for their sake, but for mine. By doing so I set myself free and was no longer bound to hold them to justice. I felt as if a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. A friend pointed out to me that I also needed to forgive myself for the mistakes I had made. I agreed and offered forgiveness to myself as well.
G - Gratitude
I needed to change my focus in my difficult situation and the path to that was via gratitude: gratitude for the things I did have, rather than longing for what I did not have. Does that resonate with you?
Living from a place of gratitude is a powerful place from which to live. Doing so, can change your perspective immediately.
No matter how difficult things are, there are always people or things around that you can be grateful for. For those who know me, I am very lean on family members as I have no parents, siblings or kids. I have my spouse, Dave, and my Aunt and extended family two Provinces away in B.C. and that’s it. While I have less than a lot of people in terms of family, I still have much to be grateful for. It’s all about perspective.
How can you unwrap the gifts of acceptance, forgiveness and gratitude in your life?
Recommended Resources
- A variety of gratitude journals are available on Amazon and are a great way to keep track of your daily “thanksgiving.”
- BetterUp Article by Paulina Cal y Mayor Galindo – “What is gratitude? 5 ways to be thankful” - https://www.betterup.com/blog/gratitude-definition-how-to-practice
Monthly Challenge
- Purchase a gratitude journal and spend 5 minutes each day this month reflecting on what you are grateful for and write them down. At the end of the month, review what you wrote.
- Reflect with a piece of paper: is there a difficult situation in your life your you need to accept so that you can find relief? Is there a person you need to forgive so you can be free? Do you need to forgive yourself? What five things are you grateful for today?