| There are many qualities and attributes that we are born with that are genetic, environmentally based or just part of our spirit. Then there are qualities that we have to earn and develop, wether through hard work, modeling someone else’s behavior or finding mentors and guides to assist in our development. Much of what we aspire to might come from a reaction to qualities that others have that are repellent and unseemly and we will do anything to not be like that. I for one, am incredibly grateful for what I have received and thankful that I have the drive to continue to want to be better each day. The one quality that I am most grateful for and defies all physics and geometry is my acceptance and integration of what I have. Even in the most challenging circumstances, I don’t long for anything other than what I have. It’s odd, but I wouldn’t change a thing, even when it’s devastating. There is a certain ignorance that comes with that quality, like the character “Lucky” in Waiting for Godot. This quality of acceptance does not make me laxadasical or dispassionate, it just puts my actions in check and trues me to driving a vision rather than an agenda. The ironic aspect of this quality is as much as I am accepting and celebrating outside circumstances and others, I have an equally difficult time accepting my own short-comings. That deficiency has come at a cost-wether it manifest in lying, anxiety or delusional promotion. The quality of self-acceptance is something that I have to work at everyday. We all have the opportunity to redefine ourselves, even when the world is pinning us to our past. Just as we have formalized and monetized POPULARITY through social media, we have also formalized and monetized DIVISION(We are a world DIVIDED) through terror, loss of control and greed. So to defeat the inertia and find the passion to be better, to do better, is not easy- but that is the attempt. The summer heat is not a natural catalyst for positive change. We tend to move slower, to be off more than on, to check out more than check in, but the opportunity is there regardless of temperature. Let yourself be guided and inspired by others talents, vitality, resilience and sustainability. Happy Summer, |
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