Acceptance: The Only Place Where Change Can Begin
[New York: Avery, 2016, p. 223]
The pandemic continues, with new cases cropping up all over the country. Local and state officials are trying to find the best balance between keeping things closed and getting things reopened.
The protests and demonstrations continue, as does the mistreatment of protestors and the respectful treatment of protestors – it all depends on the place and people involved.
This is reality: pandemic ramifications and the loss of life due to skin tone. I’d rather not be in this place, but my preference is beside the point. If I want things to get better, I have to acknowledge what is before I help change what will be into something kinder and more just. Living in unreality won’t help anyone, but it will allow the wrongs of today to continue.
The Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu know a thing or two about harsh realities and working toward a better future for everyone. First, there must be acceptance:
Acceptance allows us to engage with life on its own terms rather than rail against the fact that life is not as we would wish… [p.225]
Acceptance is the sword that cuts through all of this resistance, allowing us to relax, to see clearly, and to respond appropriately. [p.225]
Lord, keep my eyes, heart, and mind open to your direction. Make me an instrument of your peace.
Black lives matter to you; may they matter as much to me.
Reality is the key for me. Seeing things as they really are not as I would like them to be and accepting them for what they truly are allows me the freedom to make changes–not ego-driven nor the kind of the acceptance of “that’s just the way it is”. Rational Emotive Therapy sees not a glass that is half-full or half-empty but if it is a 16 oz. glass it now holds 8n oz. I can support protesters and not support gangs that are destroying my business–no “either or” here but additive–“yes and”. More than one thing can be true at the same time. It troubles my spirit when people only see one side of the equation–old Jewish proverb that says when faced with the choice of two alternates, seek a third.
So true. There is often more grace in a third way. Thanks for your thoughts, Bill. I appreciate them! peace, Johnna