No-thing outside me determines my aliveness!
In 1972 when my greatest concern was getting the attention of boys in high school, on the other side of the world were horrors against humanity. Some would say these horrors were justified, but, in truth, I can't imagine how. Our capacity as humans to cause pain and suffering to another is beyond my understanding. And I do credit myself with being incredibly understanding.
I often hear the same stories from different people in my forgiveness classes. Unfortunately, many of these stories are stories of abuse of a wide variety. Some of these stories are about individuals who have truly suffered at the hands of another, ignorant behavior perpetrated upon the innocent. Some of the suffering is the result of unskilled parenting.
In my years of teaching forgiveness and preparing for writing my book, I've researched many stories of people who were victimized. The perpetrators were weak-minded individuals who were convinced that flailing a machete around was the thing to do, followed the voices of madmen, and justified behavior against another because of their skin color or chosen lifestyle. This research had to be done in bite-sized pieces. Any more, and I would have been catapulted into depression.
The woman in the picture above is Phan Thi Kim; you know her, but you might not recognize her as an adult. There is a historic picture of her running naked to escape the burning napalm dropped over her village. Nine years old, naked, body burned, alone, in pain, and terrified. How does one survive such horrific and documented conditions?
I met her briefly many years ago at a Unity church in San Diego. She was there to dedicate a Peace Pole. She was glowing with love and conveyed a sense of hope for humanity. What does it take for someone to detach from the amount of pain and trauma that she endured? The better question is this. How can I let go of what was to embrace what is possible? What do I need to let go of to allow my chosen reality?
These are valuable questions to ponder. Pondering will always support you in rising above the issue. When you ask questions like these, you will be open to universal intelligence, and if you allow it, you will be guided to a new idea, a new mind, and a new set of expectations where you must let go of the pain and the story.
#Forgivness #TheInnerJourney #InnerWhisperings
