In my life, the day in the picture was about a year ago. It changed my outlook, my state of being and my sense of self 180 degrees. Even though I thought I was more or less ok before, looking back I realise that it was preceded by a very long period of pain, sadness, pressure, angry rebellion towards myself and others, which I mostly hid behind joy. Because being cheerful is the socially expected norm, we often become pretenders, trying to pretend that all is well with our constant activity, joy and achievements. But when the day comes when you realise that you’re actually good enough, because “That’s right. It is what it is.”, then the release is overwhelming. It shakes things up, or rather lets everything fall into place with ease.
In retrospect, I can understand how stuck I was, but at the time I also thought I was okay. Until one day you realise that it’s not. Change happens when not changing is painful enough. Of course, from time to time I find myself in a place where I doubt whether I am good enough for one thing, person, situation or another. But these are only fleeting moments, and once you’re out of there, you’ll know your way out again.
You are not your thoughts, you are not your feelings, you are not your body – you have your thoughts, you have your feelings, you have your body. It’s a very important distinction between identifying with your body, your thoughts and your feelings, and realising that you just have them.
Life is simpler and more wonderful than we think. There is always a choice – you can either change the situation or change your attitude.
