The Awakening
By Sonny Carroll
There comes a time in your life when you finally get it ... When in the midst of all your fears and insanity you stop dead in your tracks and somewhere the voice inside your head cries out "ENOUGH! Enough fighting and crying or struggling to hold on."....This is your awakening.
By Sonny Carroll
There comes a time in your life when you finally get it ... When in the midst of all your fears and insanity you stop dead in your tracks and somewhere the voice inside your head cries out "ENOUGH! Enough fighting and crying or struggling to hold on."....This is your awakening.
...slowly you begin to open up to new worlds and different points of view. And you begin re-assessing and re-defining who you are and what you really believe in...
You accept the fact that you are not perfect, and that not everyone will love appreciate or approve of who or what you are...and that's OK...and you take a long look at yourself in the mirror and you make a promise to give yourself the same unconditional love and support you give so freely to others.
...you stop maneuvering through life merely as a "consumer" hungry for your next fix...another pair of shoes or looks of approval and admiration... you recognize the importance of contributing rather than "obtaining" and "accumulating."
...you give thanks for the simple things you've been blessed with, things that millions of people upon the earth can only dream about - a full refrigerator, clean running water, a soft warm bed, the freedom of choice and the opportunity to pursue your own dreams.
...you learn about love and relationships - how to love, how much to give in love, when to stop giving, and when to walk away...you stop lashing out and pointing fingers or looking to place blame for the things that were done to you...
You learn how to say "I was wrong" and to forgive people for their own human frailties. You learn to build bridges instead of walls...and at the same time, you eliminate any relationships that are hurtful or fail to uplift...
Moreover, you learn to look at people as they really are and not as you would want them to be, and you are careful not to project your neediness or insecurities onto a relationship. You learn that you will not be more beautiful, more intelligent, more lovable or important because of the man on your arm or the child that bears your name...
...you stop appraising your worth by the measure of love you are given... You learn that the only love worth giving and receiving is the love that is given freely without conditions or limitations. And you learn what it means to love. So you stop trying to control people, situations and outcomes...
You learn that "alone" does not mean "lonely" and you begin to discover the joy of spending time "with yourself"...
You learn that life isn't always fair and you don't always get what you think you deserve, and you stop personalizing every loss or disappointment...
*****
You will either step forward into growth
or you will step back into safety.
Abraham Maslow
"I no longer play it safe. In order to grow,
I have to be willing to take new risks"
