Reflections

Growth Opportunities are Ubiquitous

• By Abel
• September 4, 2014
• No Comments

Opportunities for growth and greater awareness are everywhere. My recent trip to Canada is a great example of this. Airline travel can test the patience of a saint. Missed, canceled, and delayed flights stood in between where I was and where I wanted to be. I was stuck in limbo, waiting to get to my destination, a place holding so much promise. But until then, I was subjected to: a virtual strip search at the TSA checkpoint, a variety of rude or otherwise unaware passengers and airport workers (with an occasional friendly one or two peppered in amongst them), and the frequent blaring of the public address system which issued forth unclear and oftentimes unintelligible flight announcements.

I was bombarded with an array of sensory inputs whose apparent aim was to drive me mad. But fortunately I was aware enough to feel the onset of frustration, irritation, and impatience arising within me. At these moments I took a deep breath, held it for a few seconds, exhaled my unproductive negative emotional energy, and accepted my current circumstance. After all, I had signed up for this. This mediation quashed my burgeoning rage rather successfully each time.

Stuart Wilde said, “You have the right to accept who you are and what you have right now.” I might take that one step further and say, ‘I have the responsibility to accept who I am and what I have right now.’ Responsibility implying I am in charge of my reactions. Coming from a place of acceptance can improve your outlook on things and from this place of acceptance you can move forward. In accepting, you no longer struggle to reconcile where you are with where you had hoped to be. You are no longer playing tug-of-war with the reality what is.

Photo Credit: Ben Popken