“Live” — The Fourth Component of KARL™

I have always regarded myself as the pillar of my life. ~Meryl Streep

As we discussed in the “Relax” postings, you may find, as you grow as a person, that as a similar situation comes around for the second, third, or fourth time, you no longer sweat it as much as you did on the first go-round.

You get used to life happening, and stuff that used to bother you isn’t such a big deal anymore. It’s possible that now you even recognize that there may have been a reason that things didn’t work out the way you wanted them to. For example, despite your thinking that after the last boyfriend, you would never find another one, you did. This boyfriend might even be nicer, and a much better pick! Chances are, that even if this great relationship you are in now somehow doesn’t work out, you’ll find yet another one. Life goes on and, eventually, you learn that you need to get better at choosing your boyfriends, so you don’t have to go through the same pain over and over again.

We spend an endless amount of time playing over and over again scenarios and movies in our heads. I’m guilty of it, too. Why do we do this? It’s in our nature to assume the worst case. What if you never get pregnant, what if your child is in a terrible car accident, what if this relationship does not work out? We don’t have an excuse to continue this self-defeating behavior. For those of you who don’t yet fully understand that your bad thoughts can hurt you, I can’t emphasize enough that your attitude is key. The way you look at things is absolutely crucial to your physical and emotional well-being.

The truth is, when your first job was over, you found a better job… only to find out that the first company was sold two months later and you were glad that ”things happened for a reason.”

You went on to have a stellar career.

Your son/daughter in his/her terrible twos did turn three eventually.

Your teenager, who was a Goth, had four earrings, and could barely say hello to you, grew out of her phase and eventually grew up. Even better, you went to lunch together and talked for hours.

Somehow you found the money to fix or replace the car that kept breaking down.

You came to terms with your mother and forgave your father.

You got over your sister’s ruining your favorite sweater (which she’d borrowed without your knowledge).

You stopped grieving for your father, and eventually the ocean of tears dried up.

Your health got worse, and better, and worse, and eventually, you healed.

Be grateful; embrace you, your life, your past, your successes, your mistakes, your situation. Live in the moment. Be in this moment.

Where are you in your life right now – what are you trying to embrace or accept, or learn to live with? I’d love to hear about it – every insight, every struggle, every act of acceptance helps us all. Thanks for sharing!