Control what you can

Some people spend a large part of their life dealing with control.  Getting it.  Keeping it.  Giving it away or having it "taken from them".  Ironically, "control" is controlling their life.  I wonder if they know that. 

Recently, folks in my world have been plagued by a feeling of loss of control - hopelessness even.  I encourage them to reframe that thinking.  How much do we need to concern ourselves with the choices and behavior of other people?  Would the time and effort be better spent on self-evaluation and taking the time to invest in ourselves and our immediate world?  After all, our own corner is where the ripple effect starts - we are the drop of water in the ocean.  Do we need to spend our precious time and energy worried about how the drop of water clear across the Atlantic is doing?  Perhaps we wish them the best, but tend to our selves primarily, knowing that when we make our individual corners better, it improves all corners in the end. 

Think of it.  If instead of looking outside of ourselves, each person took the time and care to steward their own corner, we would have a collective of amazing, healthy corners - which would in turn create a better whole than would otherwise be created by lots of folks scurrying around trying to fix everyone else's corner.

We all have the choice daily - moment to moment, even - on how to spend our time and energy.  Lately, I've been diving deep back into getting a greater understanding of my Self and Remembering who I am and why.  I have been self-evaluating to consider where I could improve and make more choices from a place of love, not fear.  I have not listened to the news.  I have not read the news.  I have not spent hardly any time on social media.  

Instead, I have gone on walks without my ear buds on.  I have dared to take the time to look other people in their eyes as I encounter them, and maybe even offer a smile.  I have allowed myself to skip, to wave my arms around and be silly, to sing out loud, to laugh.  I have read a book that was made of paper pages; pages I turned with my own hand sitting in my favorite chair with a mug of tea (or a hot toddy, depending ;).  

In short - I have taken the inner approach, as I'm known to do.  I have become more acquainted with myself and I have to say, I'm really so in love!  I'm much more equipped now to be of service to others because I'm not distracted or depleted.  

I want people to know how serious this is.  Though light-hearted, I take this work very seriously.  Because this is the work of life - and what else is there, really?  

It's beautiful, but serious stuff to have the courage to look at a mirror and self-evaluate.  It's serious to reconnect with yourself and eliminate distractions.  It's serious to make the conscious choice to be aware of all that is going on around you, and nevertheless, choose love for yourself above all else.  Those choices impact you of course, but also every single person you interact with, and the people those people interact with.  The way you ripple is serious business.  

So I say, if you are going to concern yourself with "control", consider what you can control and choose for your Self and your own life.  You will find that it starts and ends there.