When faced with challenges and changes, there’s often an overwhelming desire to cling to what you had, or want.
It’s natural.
Babies do it. Animals do it. People do it.
Yet, it’s tantamount to trying to swim up a waterfall.
This is the time to surrender. Surrender doesn’t mean to let the currents suck you under.
Letting go is not the same as giving up.
Surrender means to go with the current and do all you can to avoid rocks, stagnant pockets, branches, and rough waters.
In practice, this means to:
— stop turning the past over in your mind, so that you can apply its power to the present.
— accept what is, so that you regain all energy wasted on resistance.
— remind yourself that whatever you face, there’s a solution somewhere and you’re willing to receive, or discover it.
— acknowledge that every challenge conceals a gift equal or greater to it.
— trust that life is for you, and it seeks to be glorified by your triumph.
— release attachment to the outcome, (affirm: this or something better for the highest good).
Fierce Grace is embracing life’s content, enjoyable or not, and giving your best efforts, thoughts, energy, intentions, and actions, to creating the most positive outcome.
*****
Is there a place in your life that will benefit from you being fiercely graceful?
~ Cynthia
Just like the message I read this morning, you seem to be observing my life. Thank you for these gifts. Peace and blessings.
Yes! Right now…let the adventure begin
I just read “Falling From Grace”, very similar practices. I’m trying to teach my 17 and 22 year old boys to be more graceful in their lives, this may take a bit of perserverence!
I am working on fierce grace with the universe slowing me way down by means of a torn tendon in my ankle and long term use of crutches. Of course, I find this article of yours in one of my many open windows and knew it came to me at this very moment for the purpose of me allowing more passion to flow towards the actuality of letting go. Dear sweet Cynthia, hank you for this and for all of your limitless gifts.
I’ve just walked away from my partner after realising I couldn’t take his jealousy and control any more. In the last 2 weeks I experienced domestic violence & sexual assault by him, as well as him threatening to kill me. I have had to leave my home, friends and business behind. I am truly letting go and trying to face the new – thanks for your strength and guidance <3
I am working on fierce grace with the universe in surrendering unrealistic expectations of self and others and acceptance of self and others…..I must be gentle with me….
Lately I’ve found the most therapeutic, exciting approach to life is to let go and be open to the awesome things that can come…creating a vacuum for glorious life, being open to the possibility of it.
at my base, I want to believe in the beauty of the world, in genuine kindness..and then I am in the world and trying to process and understand. I understand my situation, I don’t like it. I lead with with kindness and I always have , now I feel like an idiot, like I was not given any skills to protect myself or succeed. I blame myself, I try to understand, so that I might at least stop doing what I am doing. I get very annoyed at this wwhole thing for women, where we are not allowed to be mad.We have to be nice, and always kind, and always giving, and always forgiving, and everything has to have a reason and that has to be to serve someone. I feel like all I am doing is serving people and well there is an element of hat that I enjoy, I want to be really selfish and take care of myself. I live with an alcoholic, I am currently on welfare, I have two sons that I am trying to raise and getting real an actual support is draining.
The people at the welfare office are nasty. The doctors treating my son, act as if I am mindless idiot when I question them because I don’t agree, I get smacked down.
I feel very raw, very confused and like a scab that keeps getting picked. And I feel stupid.I was raised to be kind, to help others, and to be a decent human being, I have seen such lack of compassion in this world while going through this situation, that I want to quit this life. I am tired.All I wanted was to take care of my sons and to raise them to be happy and healthy. They were bullied at school and I fought that big system with no back up. No recourse and I am pissed off. I am so sick of feeling like a helpless victim.Because, I am not.I am battling against the health care system, the board of education, the alcoholic, the welfare system and it’s easy to believe that it is my lack of faith, or my lack in many areas. I blame myself for the man I chose.etc.
I want vindication, for a year of hell and harm to my children. I want to be assited to get off of welfare, not blamed like I chose this way. We blame the poor all the time and treat them like they wanted to arrive there.I want to be grateful, and I am, but I am also, angry, I am also sad and I am also over it. Love does not fix everything and that I can tell you is true. I wanted to feel supported by real people, not beaten down more.This isn’t even about stuff and having, I want to get up and fight and win! Not keep sucking it up and being nice.
I don’t want one more person to say this is god, because god is not this. I want one genuine person to care and just help . Not rescue. We now live in a world of people , a world that makes it seem like we are all suppsssed to be an island, isolated and cut off.So, self suffiecnt. When all we might need is compassion and just a little help. And in our current world, asking for help is seen as a true weakness.
Gailen, I understand. You’re doing the best that you can and that is good. You will be in my prayers. Don’t quit. Just for today, take a small step toward what it is you want .. just for today. One small step. Then again tomorrow. A small step toward the direction of your freedom. It takes so much courage to live this life. Keep going.
The 12 steps and fellowship of Alanon has been miraculously changing my life for the last 3+ years. Light & Love, Nancy