ToDo: Practice Acceptance & Humility
The Wisdom Of Surrender
Relying On Others
Most of us pride ourselves on our self-sufficiency. We like to be
responsible for taking care of ourselves and pulling our own weight in
the world. This is why it can be so challenging when we find ourselves
in a situation in which we have to rely on someone else. This can happen
as the result of an illness or an injury, or even in the case of a
positive change, such as the arrival of a newborn. At times like these,
it is essential that we let go of our feeling that we should be able to
do it all by ourselves and accept the help of others.
The first step is accepting the situation fully as it is. Too often we
make things worse either by trying to do more than we should or by
lapsing into feelings of uselessness. In both cases we run the risk of
actually prolonging our dependency. In addition, we miss a valuable
opportunity to practice acceptance and humility. The ego resists what
is, so when we move into acceptance we move into the deeper realm of the
soul. In needing others and allowing them to help us, we experience the
full realization that we are not on our own in the world. While this may
bring up feelings of vulnerability, a deep feeling of gratitude may also
emerge as we open to the experience of being helped. This realization
can enable us to be wiser in our service of others when we are called
upon to help.
It takes wisdom and strength to surrender to our own helplessness and to
accept that we, just like every other human being, have limitations. The
gifts of surrender are numerous. We discover humility, gratitude, and a
deepening understanding of the human experience that enables us to be
that much more compassionate and surrendered in the world.
Comments
This is SO GOOD! A friend of mine once told me (when I was feeling bad about accepting so much help after surgery and feeling that I was imposing on people, useless and like a loser), that to refuse her help was the same thing as ME stealing HER blessing! She explained that it blessed her to be able to help me. That helped me to put this all into perspective. It is so very hard to be the vulnerable one, especially when I've always been the strong one who get's to help others. I can say this, it takes a much stronger person to ACCEPT help than it does to be the giver. This is a VERY important lesson to learn because we will ALL be there one day. Most of us don't get out of this life without being dependent at least once. Think of how it's going to be when we're old and need extra help. I dread that day but maybe by then I will learn to be more gracious.
Thanks for sharing Gen!