It is understandable that you would struggle with optimism, Dear One.  That you might more easily anticipate the worse possible outcome, rather than the best.

You have come by this belief rightly so.  You have experienced the worst.  The worst has already happened to you.  And so, you have every reason in the world to expect that it would, or could, happen again.

But here is the thing: Just because it has happened to you, doesn’t mean that it is going to happen to you again.
It could! But It is not a foregone conclusion.  And you, Dear One, are behaving as if it is.

You are fearing what may or may not come to pass.  And as a result, you are missing out on, spoiling even, your present, over something that will most likely never be.

So, how do you not do this?  How do you get past your aversion to optimism, and allow yourself to experience the great pleasure of being able to look forward to, and get excited about, all of the wonderful things that are possible for you in your life ahead, without dread?

• Do you avoid the sun forever because you got a really bad sunburn? It could happen again.
• Do you never eat in a restaurant again because you got really bad food poisoning? It could happen again.
• Do you never get into a car again because you were in a really bad accident? It could happen again.

The truth is Dear One, that only you know.
It is a choice; a decision to be made.  And it is one that only you can make.

What if, in this moment Dear One, you decided to love yourself unconditionally, to nurturer yourself, to honor yourself, to forgive, care for and prioritize yourself, to accept yourself exactly where and as you are, to be a peace?

What if, in this moment, you decided to remember that you are worthy, that you are divine, that the reason that you are here is to have a joyful experience of being alive?

If you did this Dear One, would the next choice that you make, the next answer that you give, the next action that you take, the next words that you speak, the next thought that you think, be any different?

Being patient and waiting are two very different things, Dear One.

Patience is an act of allowing, of knowing, of creating, of quiet anticipation.  It is fluid, changing, and constantly in motion.  It is a powerful, empowering, and confident choice that requires your active, conscious participation throughout.

Waiting is a passive act.  It is stagnant.  It lacks action, energy, movement, and active participation.   It can be frustrating, stressful, and emotionally unpredictable.  It is an inert, submissive, and unempowered choice that does not require much of you once the decision to wait has been made.

So when you are in a spot Dear One, where you think that what happens next is totally and completely out of your hands, think again.

You’ve still got one more choice to make.

And a pretty important one at that.

[This one is a very recent repost, but a much needed reminder to myself]

When you are hurting, Dear One, when you are in pain, please remember this; you have come to this place to heal this place.

You did not end up here because you did something wrong. You did not end up here because you are being punished. You did not end up here because you are being tested, tortured, or asked to prove yourself.

You ended up here Dear One, for one reason and one reason only, because you are being given an opportunity to heal.

Your thoughts set the tone for your day, Dear One.

• Scary thoughts can cause almost any experience to seem frightening.
• Happy, silly thoughts cause you to see humor in almost any situation.
• Thoughts of scarcity can cause you to see lack under any circumstance.

You get the gist.

Your thoughts (fueled by your beliefs), not only determine the tone of your day, Dear One, they determine your reaction to, experience with, and interpretation of, every, single, thing that happens to you over the course of your entire life.

THAT is why we keep saying to you, change your thoughts and you can change your experience of every, single, thing that follows.

Life is not setting the tone, Dear One.  You are.

^

We are not going to try and stop you from making self-destructive choices Dear One, repeating self-destructive patterns, or engaging in self-destructive relationships.

This is your life and you are free to choose to live it any way that you please.

But what we are going to do is try and help you to become more aware of the fact that you are doing so.

We want you to think about and be conscious of every single choice that you make.  We want you to choose purposefully, deliberately, and with intention.

If you are making choices that are harming you, we would like for you to be fully aware of the fact that you are doing so.

This is your life Dear One, and you are free to make any choice that pleases you.

If, however, the choices that you are making are not pleasing to you, then we are going to do all that we can to encourage you to start making different ones.

Start by choosing to believe with absolute certainty (or at least with as much certainty as you can muster), that everything is going to be okay.

And then, act accordingly.

Because the truth is Dear One, that it will be.

^

Which would you prefer?

• To live in an abundant universe filled with unlimited resources, or one filled with shortages and lack?

• To have an unlimited number of choices available to you in every situation, or only one?

• To live in a reality that is fluid, forgiving, changeable, and influenced by all those who live in it, or one that is linear, solid and unforgiving, that you are powerless to change?

Choose your answers wisely Dear One, because once you do, you are going to have to live with them, you are going to have to live in the reality that they create as a result.

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.

^

You are not lost, damaged or irreparably broken, Dear One.  You have not traveled so far off course that you need to be concerned that you will not be able to find your way back.

We want to assure you that there is nothing fundamentally wrong with you – you are not out of order – you do not need to be “fixed”.

(But we can understand why it is that you might be feeling that way)

When you stop prioritizing those things in your life that bring you the greatest amount of joy, healing, comfort, support, relief, satisfaction or pleasure – it should be of no surprise that you are left not feeling your best.

You don’t need to worry about it Dear One.  You simply need to decide to start choosing differently.

Once you do, we think you will be pleasantly surprised to discover just how quickly things can snap right back into place.