Accepting Yourself and Your Journey

Woohoo! Let's start today's lovely blog by looking at the definition of acceptance.

Acceptance: a willingness to tolerate a difficult or unpleasant situation.

Once we have found acceptance where we are, we can begin to work to move out of that situation and onto the next. The problem lies in the fact that we are not typically happy where we are.

You may have a few complaints if you live in an area with four seasons. In the winter, you say, "It's so cold and dreary. I can't wait until spring."

In the spring, you say, "I just want these April showers to stop; I want it to be hot."

In the summer, you say, "It's too hot. I can't wait until fall."

In the fall, you say, "It's too windy, and I'm tired of raking these leaves. I want it to be winter so I don't have to do any more yard work."

And then we start over again.

Is that how we handle the seasons of our lives? For many years, I've taught that we go through seasons in our lives. Some are great seasons, and we want to embrace them; some are unfortunate, and we want to move on.

One of my favorite lines from a song Reason by Unspoken begins with these lyrics, "This year's felt like, four seasons of winter." Has your year ever felt like four seasons of winter?

Once you fully accept your winter, you can find peace and move on. And, in the process, you will grow stronger and better.

When you accept, you align with reality – This is life. I'm going to accept this and improve myself in the process.

Accepting that not everything has to be perfect can release a lot of unnecessary pressure we put on ourselves. I accept that I'm getting older. I accept that I'm living paycheck to paycheck. I accept that I am alone.

Acceptance is the key to unlocking a feeling of freedom, peace, and fulfillment.

Acceptance doesn't mean resignation; it means something is what it is, and there's got to be a way through it. Michael J. Fox

The season you are in is not what is keeping you from experiencing peace; you are resisting your current season and want to move on. That is what is stealing your peace.

Accept this season, find peace where you are, and then you can work to change it. Try saying this, "This is where I am right now. I'm going to accept it, work through it, and get to a better place." That is powerful!

Have you ever experienced something that you thought was terrible, and years later, when you look back at it, you realize it wasn't that bad?

We complain about winter, and then in the middle of May, we say, "It wasn't that bad."

We think giving birth is the most painful and traumatic experience we will ever have, and months later, we realize it wasn't that bad, and some of us do it again!

What if you would make the decision to embrace acceptance and let nothing anger you or bother you?

Be faithful and happy with what you have and joyfully create a space to grow.

And if you need even more inspiration, in my book Under the Roof, I quote Winnie the Pooh, "You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think."