Have you tried asking yourself some questions before going to bed like: “What did I do today? Was I free from worry or fear, free to be by myself, free to say ‘no’ to things I don’t want to do, free to say what I mean and not afraid to bear my soul? Am I celebrating the beauty of life in its true essence?”
There is one person in this side of the hemisphere who feels that if there is one truest essence of life, it is when you feel the sense of empowerment that allows you to speak your mind and stand up for your rights and desires. “Freedom After 50” author Sue Patton Thoele claims that she has found the true essence of life by acquiring an increased sense of awareness of her inherent strength, an expanded of self worth, and a willingness to take risks.”
Thoele realizes that the dragon voices of doubt and fear when allowed to wallow in our minds can dominate us and hamper our growth, thus, sap the juice of our self confidence. Along this line, she outlines some ways for us to earn our right to live a life of our own, a life laced with gracious acceptance not controlled or dictated by what other people would think.
Grace each moment with gratitude. We must bear in mind that nothing lasts forever. Neither sorrow nor joy. Each moment emanates the precious gift of life, every moment, no matter how dark or light, is a moment worthy of gratitude. To fill our lives with grace, we need to kiss our joys as they gently fly into our hearts, and so do the sorrow that we experienced. Giving thanks for sorrows and pains is more easily done when we explore our soul and can learn from that experience. When we truly give thanks in all the things that we experienced, joy is our daily guest, and sorrows flee more quickly more than we could imagine.
Treat health as wealth. “Be compassionate,” the native American teacher White Eagle once remarked. Refrain from any condemnation or criticism because these are emotions which sow seeds of disharmony in the physical body. Take care, be kind to your sister body, who is your servant and needs your love and wisdom. White Eagle’s reminders also reveal that caring for our body includes not only what we do with it and what goes into it, but also hose thoughts that emanate from it. All are important for maintaining and enjoying the abundant blessing of life.
Dodge other people’s anger. Learning to control our anger is tough, so why in the world do we often step in front of another person’s? enough is enough! Let’s get out of the way. As we move out of range, anger thrown at us will boomerang back to the senders, allowing them to figure out their own feelings. This is indeed an evading maneuver that is absolutely an essential technique in not wasting our energy on people who are not worth our salt, so to speak. Ask for what I want and need. Imagine for a minute that we are standing at the Pearly gates presenting our life’s ledger to Saints Peter. Across the top as two columns headings:
1. Giving others what they want and need
2. Asking for (and getting) what I want and need
My bet is that no matter how adept she becomes at asking for what she wants and needs, at the end of her life, a typical woman’s ledger will be over balanced in favour of number one.
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