"THINGS MAY HAPPEN AROUND YOU OR TO YOU, BUT WHAT'S MOST IMPORTANT IS WHAT HAPPENS WITHIN YOU AND BECAUSE OF YOU."
Allow me to tell you a tale of two women. They lived similar lives as housewives. They came from similar backgrounds, experiences and educations. And they were happy, fulfilled and living comfortably in the suburbs.
Flash forward five years. One woman, let's call her Mary, is struggling. She's in debt, 50 pounds heavier, her health is suffering, she no longer feels happy or fulfilled. An old friend sees her and asks her what happened. She responds “well, my husband left me”, and then goes on to spin her tale of how her life went downhill from there.
Let's visit our other housewife, we'll call her Jane. She's even better off financially than she was 5 years ago having started her own business. She's healthier, happier and more fulfilled than ever. An old friend sees her and asks her what has happened. Jane responds by saying she wanted a better life for herself and decided to do some things differently. When the friend asks about her husband she says, “Oh, him? He walked out five years ago”.
Both women had the same circumstance occur in their lives. Mary saw it as something that “happened to me” Jane made a different choice; she chose to look at it as an event that took place in her life, but not necessarily directed at her. In other words, Jane chose not to be a victim of circumstances.
Circumstances occur in all our lives. Sometimes they set us back, they can be painful, even devastating.
But it's all about how we choose to respond.
What we decide to do about it.
What we allow to happen or what we create as a result of it.
And most of all, it's about how we look at it.
We may not understand why something happened, but to go into victim-hood is the worst 'hood we could go into. In victim-hood, it's easy to get trapped while recalling all of the other injustices that have occurred in your life. It's easy to get into blame games and pity parties. Nothing good ever comes out of any of those neighborhoods.
Things that happen in our lives only have as much reality, power and impact as we choose to give them. That's why two people can respond totally differently to a similar event. One person may go into a lifetime of mourning over the loss of a loved one, whereas another person spends a lifetime raising awareness and money to help find a cure.
Look at unwanted circumstances as an opportunity to grow, to bounce back, to become stronger.
Look at un-welcomed events as a chance to make changes, make better decisions, learn lessons.
Overall, when “shit happens”, see it as a chance for shift to happen in your life. And by doing so you will create a shift in the world around you.
Peace and be well
Jack
Jack Roberts
The Dean of Affirmations
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