Acceptance, enjoyment, enthusiasm: a trio to try. I like the flow of these words, the sanguine effect of reading and feeling the words on my soul, in my mind and body :-). I feel pleasantly light, noticing a bubbly energy, and my heart is open. Here’s a bit of back story to this post.
Mike and I just completed a course about wisdom for living and dying., a program put on by a Buddhist group, IMS, the Insight Meditation Society — a wonderful group with rich offerings, not just for Buddhists. Acceptance is one of the qualities that inevitably enriches our living and dying. Even knowing this, acceptance has been really challenging for me (check out this recent post, Acceptance Changes Everything). But as I grow older and a bit wiser, I do find acceptance more accessible, even when life is difficult.
In addition to acceptance, we had practices for forgiveness, letting go, kindness, ease, and goodness — noticing and appreciating our own, and others’ goodness… but, wait, that would be a different blog.
It’s Eckhart Tolle whose wisdom I’m offering here. He says that whenever we are in the frame either of acceptance, enjoyment or enthusiasm, those are clues that we are “on the right track”. Indeed, Tolle says, “If you are not in the state of either acceptance, enjoyment, or enthusiasm, look closely and you will find that you are creating suffering for yourself and others.”
While acceptance is not always easy, enjoyment and enthusiasm are qualities that are near and dear to my heart and mind. Whether I am out in the world, active and engaged, or sitting quietly, reading, watching the hummingbirds at the feeder, I easily experience enthusiasm and enjoyment. Consciously inviting acceptance into the mix brings lightness, inner and maybe outer smiles.
Where in your your life do you find enthusiasm and enjoyment? And do you find some acceptance in the mix? I’d love to hear, we’re in this together.
Jill Schroder is the author of BECOMING: Journeying Toward Authenticity. BECOMING is an invitation for self-reflection, and to mine our memorable moments for insights, meaning, and growth. Check the website for a sample chapter, or see the reviews to get a flavor for the volume. Your feedback, forwards, tweets, likes are most welcome. We’re in this together 🙂
