“Let your past make you better, not bitter.”
Sometimes the would have, could have, and should haves of our past can seem like a constantly growing and endless list. And each regret or unfortunate event can make us feel bitter. But what if we take every past regret and bad incident and use them to fuel our drive to make things better? This anonymous quote is a great reminder to not get bogged down by our negative past but to use the wisdom we’ve gathered from it to inspire positive change.
“Anything that makes you weak–physically, intellectually and spiritually–reject it as poison.”
A poison is anything that can cause illness or death to a living thing. This quote, by Swami Vivekananda, helps us recognize that toxic people, environments, and situations are poisonous. They make us weak physically, intellectually, and spiritually. We would undoubtably reject poison in its tangible form. However, we don’t always reject it in the other ways it can appear in our lives. So, let us remember to reject the things that cause similar harm–The things that ill or deaden our body, mind, and soul.
“If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.”
Sometimes we tend to have a much greater compassion for others than we do for ourselves. We understand when others make an unintended mistake and we’re prepared to help them in times of need. Meanwhile, we may be quick to dismiss our own hurt and pain and be less forgiving of our own mistakes. This quote, by Jack Kornfield, reminds us to not be so hard on ourselves–to also offer ourselves grace and compassion. Otherwise, our compassion is not whole but rather incomplete.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
The third Monday in January is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, honoring the great civil rights leader, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. On such a day and in such dark times in America, it’s fitting to reflect on this quote by King. The full quote from his book, Strength to Love, is as follows: “Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction.” On this day, let’s…
“Everything you do, every thought you have, every word you say creates a memory that you will hold in your body. It’s imprinted on you and affects you in subtle ways – ways you are not always aware of. With that in mind, be very conscious and selective.”
This quote, by Phylicia Rashad, is about the power of the mind and the subtle ways each of our thoughts, words, and actions can alter our outlook on ourselves and life little by little. Therefore, it’s important to be conscious of what we think, say, and do. Meanwhile trying to heal whatever pain or damage that’s already there.
“Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.”
Monkey bars are a staple on a lot of playgrounds. This playground equipment is typically a row of equidistant bars, rings, or triangles elevated high enough that you have to reach, jump, or climb to grab them. The goal is to get from one end to the other without touching the ground. Logically, you would have to let go of what you’re currently grabbing on to in order to grab the next bar, ring, or triangle in front of you. Otherwise, you’ll just be stuck hanging there; because getting across without letting go is physically impossible. This quote, by C.S. Lewis, makes this a beautiful analogy for life’s painful experiences.…
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“If you’re doing something outside of dominant culture, there’s not an easy place for you. You will have to do it yourself.”
“Don’t wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what? Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident, and more and more successful.”
“It’s so much darker when a light goes out than it would have been if it had never shone.”
“It’s so much darker when a light goes out than it would have been if it had never shown.” This quote, from a John Steinbeck novel, is so true. When a light goes out in the midst of darkness, it takes a moment for our eyes to adjust. For a while the darkness seems to overwhelm everything. The sudden change between light and dark somehow makes the dark even more intense. Well, this same phenomenon applies to people. When people who’ve brought light and joy to us and the world depart, we may realize we had taken their light for granted. It’s only when it’s gone that its absence is…
“Whatever you do, never run back to what broke you.”
Overcoming challenges is a great accomplishment, especially the ones that bring us to a breaking point. But after some time has passed, we tend to forget or minimize the challenges we’ve overcome and the effect they had on us. Even worse, we put on rose-colored glasses and look back on a difficult situation we’ve been through and see only the good parts. As a result, we actually look back at these experiences with fond memories. This quote, by Frank Ocean, is about not forgetting the things that broke us–the people, environments, situations, etc. Once we’ve overcome and learned from them, why go backwards to relive them again ? Why be…
Living Life Poetically: Sadness Gone
The poem, “Sadness Gone,” has a unique form. Each stanza has three lines that follow the pattern of five, seven, five. Meaning, the first and third lines have five syllables while the middle line has seven. This form is considered a haiku, which is a form of traditional Japanese poetry. Typically, these poems are only three lines long and seldom rhyme. However, in “Sadness Gone,” I took a few liberties. It is a haiku poem with three stanzas and some rhythmic rhyme. The poem examines what we can learn or gain each time we realize sadness is gone. Sadness Gone Sadness gone will show, It all passes in the end…The…
Living Life Poetically: If Only
This poem is fairly short compared to the others. And the introduction to it will be short as well. “If Only” explores a simple question. What if we could turn back the clock after a tragedy? There’s always that one thing that changes everything. So what if we could just go back and change that one thing? If Only If only we could turn back time. Then you wouldn’t have left. And no one would’ve wept. If only we could shift nature’s paradigm. If only we could turn back time. Then you would still be here. And everyone would let you know how much they care. If only things could…
