Every day I am giving the opportunity:
- to be frustrated.
- to be irritated with others.
- to be stressed.
- to be worried.
- to be worried about what other people think.
- to question myself.
- to question others.
- to yell.
- to sigh.
- to roll my eyes.
- to grumble.
- to complain.
- to be a part of the problem.
- to add to the chaos.
And sometimes I take that opportunity and run with it. But nothing good has ever come from any of those emotions or actions. Nothing at all. So I refuse to act that way anymore. More is expected of me.
I love Gandhi’s Top 10 Fundamentals for Changing the World (poster found here). Words to live by. Gandhi believed in living a life of simplicity, of faith, of truth, of non-violence, and of service. He believed in something that he called, “reducing myself to zero”; reducing the clutter in your life in order to serve others better. He even spent one day a week in total silence; saying that it brought him inner peace and made him a better listener.
I don’t see the whole “total silence” thing ever happening in my life (I do live with children), but I certainly can take some time each day to remember some of his great wisdom.
There’s only one phrase that I would edit–the one that says, “you are in control”–because that is not true. God is in control. And I am so glad that He is because I would never be able to “forgive and let go” without Him.
“So, whether I eat or drink, or whatever I do, do it all for the glory of God.” ~1 Corinthians 10:31
Girl, I couldn't agree more. I just had a revelation driving to work that I was choosing to be happy today…despite the fact that I'd been sitting in traffic for over an hour, I left my house with both kids screaming bloody murder and my poor sweet husband knee deep in the trenches dealing with the morning chaos.
I choose to be happy. Today. I'll deal with Tomorrow tomorrow.