In my morning email

"You cannot worry about someone and love them at the same time. Most people mistake the emotion of worry for the emotion of love. They think that worrying about somebody means that you love them."

--- Abraham

I am really thinking about this. Is it true? Yes? No? I can't tell yet.

Pondering.

Writer's Block: Happy Birthday George Washington!

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Yesterday I wrote about the importance of mastering one's urge to strike out at people and how critical that is. I really believe this.

I also spent the day desperately wanting to bonk a wide selection of humans over the head. Badly.

WHAP!

****

But then there's this:

http://showingup.livejournal.com/100038.html

: )

Thank you, windofvenus

My friend windofvenus recently posted this:

"Don Miguel Ruiz says that you will only allow others to abuse you as much as you abuse yourself. If you reduce the self-abuse, your tolerance for external abuse will decrease."

Here, she is quoting the author of The Four Agreements.

Reading this, I suddenly felt excellent---my tolerance for the abusive actions and words of others has gone waaaaaaay down. I'll walk away quietly well before I'll stay for a second helping. This shows real progress in my growth, and I think it means that I am abusing myself less.

In turn, this must mean that I am resonating with more self-love, and thus, can expect to call kinder, gentler, wiser folk to my side.

Now, that is a beautiful thing.

More from windofvenus

"Another Don Miguel Ruiz quote...

'When you become wise, you respect your body, you respect your mind and you respect your soul. Your life is controlled by your heart, not your head. You no longer sabotage yourself, your own happiness, or your own love.'"

WANT! WANT! WANT!

Also want to be surrounded by people who want this, too.

Reflecting

One of my peers has reminded me that I once said that "your ability to change and grow as a person is directly related to your ability to tolerate discomfort."

Now, I must live up to this.

It would be so much more comfortable to withdraw, having made my own quiet assessments of what reality actually looks like, and focus on changing the only thing I can control completely: my own course of action.

I know I can manifest a vision that gets me where I want to go despite challenging conditions. I've done it a thousand times with good results. I can manifest what I need, as soon as I understand what that is, why I need it, and what I need to overcome to get it.

When I depend on myself, I know I am golden.

But to remain in any kind of relationship to others who are themselves free agents: all unpredictable, each quite fallible, some unstable and perhaps uncontrollable---now, *that* is a challenge.

It requires willingness to engage in uncomfortable communication, manage internal discomfort, and remain present under potentially distressing conditions. In short, it is an opportunity to level up.

Luckily, I don't have to do it today.