For more inspiration The Quiet Revolution is on Facebook.
Empowerment To Be Yourself
17 Replies
Tag Archives: Courage
Word Snap Weekly-Finding Your Way
“Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.”–Jalaluddin Rumi
I love the message of this quote. Just let yourself be drawn by what you really love. No complicated instructions. You don’t have to read a self-help book or an article on the ” 10 Ways to Find Your Purpose.”
I agree with this advice. Follow your heart. Listen to your inner voice or what “pulls you” in a certain direction.
Bravery
Children with special needs and learning differences do have to fight big battles every day. They are trying to relate to a world which often does not make any allowances for their differences. A world where they are seen as strange and not accepted.
They struggle to engage with the lessons that are presented to them in the classroom. Their learning styles or best way of accessing the material may not be taken into consideration.
The pace at which the material is presented may be too fast and not repeated enough for them to be able to process it.
They may have sensory needs and sensitivities that are impacted. They can be distracted by a noisy classroom or the noise itself can be painful for sensitive ears.
They may struggle to answer questions when called upon because it takes them a longer time to formulate their response.
They may prefer to work alone but are often required to work in groups where there are demands for social skills that they lack, and with other children who are more naturally adept in group interactions.
They may need down time, sensory breaks, and just plain time alone to regroup, recharge, and not be given those breaks.
With all the stresses that are not understood by others, kids can start acting out and have meltdowns. Their behaviors are not understood or easily tolerated by the other kids and the teacher. So that causes them to stand out again as different or strange.
The IEP report stated ” He comes to school every day with a smile on his face and ready to work.”
That is what I call bravery.
Letting Go
“Although we have been made to believe that if we let go we will end up with nothing, life reveals just the opposite: that letting go is the real path to freedom.” –Sogyal Rinpoche
Letting go can be releasing long held negative emotions about things that happened in the past. Like perceived or real wrongs done to you by others, memories of people letting you down, or disappointments you have experienced.
When we have all this energy tied up in these feelings about past events it is not available for us in our life now. Part of us is still locked in that past and is unable to move forward to something new. Unable to fully experience our lives now.
There is another type of letting go I am thinking about now. We have to be willing to let go when something has not worked out for us or when we feel the need to move on to grow. When we experience disappointments or reach a place where we are stagnating.
There is a lot of resistance to letting go of the familiar when we do not know what will be there to fill that space. The familiar feels more secure even when we are very unhappy with our situation. It is known versus the scary unknown.
In the past, I have sometimes been unwilling to give up or admit something is not working out for me. It could have been a mixture of pride, fear of admitting failure, and thinking that it is wrong to give up. I have spent too long in many jobs because I thought I should not give up and admit it was not working out or that it was a bad fit for me.
I did not take the time to look inside at who I was and how that person fit with my work situation. Many times it was like trying to force a puzzle piece into a place where it really did not belong. Parts of it might look like it should fit but it just wasn’t quite the right shape. If you keep trying to fit yourself in and it is not working you need to look at that.
When you are able to admit that you need to make a change, it does take courage to let go. To let go of that dream and start looking for a better fit for you. In the beginning it is scary because you may not have any idea where you are going or what is the right direction.
At this point, it is good to listen to your inner voice and let it guide you in the direction that feels right to you. Trust that as you start to explore your horizons you will find the right path to where you need to go.
You will probably need to sit with the not knowing for a while as well. Many of us, including me, have a tendency to want to find the answer as soon as possible and embark on a new course right away. This can cause us to jump into something too quickly that is truly not the right fit. It is better to take time for reflection and exploration. To feel your way along through the process and check in with yourself to see what feels right. You need to be open, trust, and have faith. Then take the first step on the next part of your journey. The first step is letting go.
” Mystery is what happens to us when we allow life to evolve rather than having to make it happen all the time…Just to see. Just to notice. Just to be there.”–Joan Chittister
I am out of town for a few days. I wrote this a few days ago but felt it went well with Stream of Consciousness Saturday for “go.”
We Need To Be Dreamers
We are the music-makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams.
World-losers and world-forsakers,
Upon whom the pale moon gleams;
Yet we are the movers and shakers,
Of the world forever, it seems.”–Arthur O’Shaughnessy
We have to have dreams and believe in possibilities if there is ever to be human progress. It is so easy to get discouraged and bogged down with all the problems in the world. Thinking that things will never change or will always be bad.
There is always the possibility of new discoveries and that the world can improve.
“TO BE HOPEFUL in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness.
What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places—and there are so many—where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.
And if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future. The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.”–Howard Zinn
I want to read over and over all the hopeful and encouraging words of all the dreamers and visionaries. It buoys me up and helps me to believe in life and the future of the world.
Let’s act in small positive ways and not give in to the darkness.
Notes Tied On The Sagebrush 