In a culture where approval/disapproval has become the predominant regulator of effort and position, and often the substitute for love, our personal freedoms are dissipated. —Viola Spolin
Wanting others to approve our efforts, our appearance, our aspirations and behavior is perfectly normal, certainly not unhealthy. However, needing the approval in order to proceed with our lives is.
In early childhood we are taught to obey others and to please them. We confuse love with approval, and we begin to march to someone else's drum. Then we get even more approval. But soon we get out of step with ourselves; we neglect our personal needs and become puppets. Giving away our power to the whims of others weakens our Spirit. Personal freedom means choosing our own behavior; it means acting rather than reacting. It also means allowing ourselves the full adventure of living, of meeting each moment wholly, of responding in a pure, spontaneous, personally honest manner. Only then can we give to life what is ours to give.
Each of us has a unique part to play in the drama of life. And we need to rely on our higher power for our cues, not on those whose approval we think we need. When we turn within for guidance, all the approval we could hope for will be ours.
I will be free today. I will let no one control my actions.
From Each Day a New Beginning: Daily Meditations for Women by Karen Casey©
Twenty-Four Hours a Day
All is well. In the midst of turmoil, let us remember, all is well; in the midst of the pain of self-awareness, all is well. The struggle of the turmoil, the pain that accompanies the lessons of self-awareness, are preparing us for becoming all we are meant to become. We each have a special gift to offer in this life. We will come to understand those gifts and be able to give them as we grow with the pain of self-understanding. All is well. Deep down happiness ripples, it's rippling to the surface of our lives.
Action for Today: My lesson for today is understanding, of myself and others. Happiness is the grade I earn each day of my "becoming."
And acceptance is the answer to all my problems today.
When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing or situation
-- some fact of my life -- unacceptable to me, and I can find no serenity
until I accept that person, place, thing or situation
exactly as its supposed to be at this moment.
Nothing, absolutely nothing, happens in our Higher Power's world by mistake.
- Alcoholics Anonymous, p. 417
Thought to Ponder . . .
Unless I accept life completely on life's terms,
I cannot be happy.
AA-related 'Alconym' . . .
A B C = Acceptance, Belief, Change.
Daily Motivation
Express the beauty
Let yourself let go of your limiting thoughts. Let yourself be the person who lives the life of your dreams.
Let yourself act with confidence and decisiveness. Let yourself easily and naturally be purposeful, focused, creative and effective.
Let life’s ups and downs come and go. Let yourself respond to each new situation in the most positive and graceful way you can imagine.
You are immersed in countless possibilities. Allow yourself to follow the very best of those possibilities to joyous fulfillment.
What you allow yourself to think and to do determines the way your life progresses. Let the best of life into the doorway of your presence, and live a life that fulfills your highest values.
Let each moment be guided by positive purpose. And let your whole life express the beauty of who you truly are.
— Ralph Marston
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