The Message in Acceptance
If we would look up the word acceptance in the dictionary, it would probably say the action of receiving something offered. It means so much more than that, as it is a way to grow from its lessons. The lesson from acceptance comes in many different situations. My son likes getting tattoos. If I didn’t accept this, I would be pushing him away and it would threaten our relationship. I chose to accept it. It’s his life and he is free to do whatever brings him happiness, even if I don’t like it.
There is nothing I can do about traffic here in Los Angeles, so I accept it. Otherwise I am allowing something I have no control over to affect me in a negative way by complaining and being unhappy. I recently had an experience where a person began yelling at me and calling me names. It was over the telephone. I realized this person was extremely stressed. He did not even have the correct information about the situation he was angry about. To my surprise I listened and decided not to respond. I could have matched his negative attitude, but didn’t allow myself to react. I allowed him to express himself. I was not interested in defending myself and in the state he was in; I knew he could not hear me anyway. My feelings were hurt because he was a friend and dumped his stress and toxic emotions on me. I chose to elevate my awareness by accepting this situation. I didn’t have the need to fix it, so I just accepted it and allowed it to be.
When somebody is so far off their center, it’s best to listen and be compassionate toward their feelings. I realized in my own life, if I got angry, it’s my own anger. The situation or person just got me in touch with it. I no longer blame the other person. I take full responsibility for my feelings. Eventually, I may even thank the other person for making me aware of my anger. Now I have to accept myself for being angry.
It’s easy to accept what’s happening in our lives when we are experiencing positive situations like good health, love, and abundance. It is often our resistance to change and inability to accept it that causes problems. Our fears about the future and the anxiety that arise takes us out of the reality of being in the present. Our lack of acceptance toward change impacts our desire for stability and disturbs our peace, which prevents us from embracing the message and meaning of the experience. Choosing acceptance as a way of living our life transcends the limitations of the mind and reduces the stress and the mental games our mind plays on us. The only constant in life is change. We can learn to master it and accept it.