We know that you are tough,  Dear One and we know that you are strong, and clever, and resourceful tool.  We know that you are extremely capable of coping with, adapting to, accepting, and working around obstacles, difficulties, and pain.

But the truth is that we don’t want you to be.

What we want for you, Dear One, is that when you first feel that splinter go in, when you first feel that little prick of pain, when that alarm sounds and you experience those first pangs of concern, distress, discomfort, hurting, or dis-ease, that you give your coping skills a rest for a change.

We don’t want to see you reach for your usual box of Band-Aids and show us and the rest of the world just how well you can adapt to it, cope with it, rationalize it or downplay it and keep on going.  What we want, Dear One, is to see you reach for the tweezers instead.

We don’t want you getting better, and becoming more practiced at learning to live with the little pricks in your life.  We want you getting better at removing them, while they are still small, before they have a chance to take root, evolve, spread, and grow into bigger ones.

Regret weighs you down, Dear One.  It holds you back, keeps you still, roots you to a moment in the past, prevents you from moving forward.

And by contrast, forgiveness frees you.  It releases you, it sets you free, and allows you to create, to move ahead, to experience something new.

If what you want is to remain still, Dear One,  then by all means, keep holding on to your regrets.

But if what you want is freedom, is to move forward, you are going to have to choose to forgive, and let it go.

How do you know if you are in the flow, Dear One, if you are on the right path for you, if you are going after the right things for you, in the right way for you?

Here is one simple way to know for sure.

• If you are enjoying your pursuit of it, you are on the right track.
• If you are pursuing it in hopes of finding enjoyment at the end, chances are, you are not.

That is how you know.

^

We can feel your impatience, Dear One, your restlessness, your desire to move on from where you are now, to someplace new, to where you want to be.

We can see you searching, looking, trying, struggling, experimenting, stumbling around looking for the key to the door that you think will get you there.

Well, we’ve got some bad news for you.  No matter where you look, no matter how hard you try, no matter much you visualize it, no matter how much you want it, you are never going to find that key, Dear One.  Ever.

Why?

Because it doesn’t exist.

The door is already open.

And all you need to do is walk through it.

You are here to have an experience of being alive, Dear One.

You can’t get it wrong.

Just like you can’t order the wrong flavor of ice cream.  No flavor is wrong.  Each flavor is just different.

The more you order – the more flavors you will get a chance to taste –  the more you will discover what your personal preferences are.  Some flavors you will like, some you will love, and some you will discover that you don’t like much at all.

But with each choice Dear One, you are learning.

As long as you keep choosing, as long as you continue to taste all that you want to taste, and allow yourself to continue to have new experiences, you can’t get it wrong.  We promise you that.

You now officially have one less thing to worry about!

You are not meant to already have all of the answers, Dear One.

You are meant to discover them through the experience of living.

That is what you are here for.

So cut yourself a little slack today, okay?

Once you come to realize/recognize/remember/accept, Dear One, that healing / balance / alignment IS the point, the whole point of your journey, nothing ordinary will ever not feel extraordinary again.

^^

If what you want is more of the same, Dear One, keep right on doing, saying, thinking, behaving, and believing exactly what you have been.

But if what you want is something different, you’re going to have to trust yourself enough to make the other choice this time.

We know that you know exactly what that is.

What we don’t know yet, is if today is going to be the day that you allow yourself to choose it.

But we can’t wait to find out.

How do you know if you should just let it go, Dear One?

Ask yourself; is investing your energy in this emotion, in this relationship, in this exchange, in this conflict, in this fight, a worthwhile investment for you?

That is how you know.

Making the decision to be brave, Dear One, to act bravely, is far from a risky decision.

In fact, it is probably one of the safest decisions that you can make.

Why?

Because being brave requires you to trust, and in order to trust you must connect with your heart, listen to what it has to say, and allow it to guide you.

What could be safer than that?

You want to play it safe, Dear One?

Connect, trust, and take the leap.