Just recently I was in India to be part of Sonia and Matt’s, my daughter and son-in law’s wedding. It was a challenge making it happen! My deepest thanks to so many of you who have supported me over the past few months and expressed your congratulations for the happy couple!
Matt and Sonia with Family
Have you ever worked on something in your life and had absolutely no idea how it was going to turn out? It could be about transforming a difficult child, a project or a habit that did not go the way you had hoped for but actually turned out far better than you could ever dream of?
Sonia was my child-project that would not go the way I had imagined or hoped for. And she turned out perfectly well when her mom learned to let go and trust God within during some really challenging times!
Only when I saw Sonia’s father giving her away did I really understand sadness. Like many I had thought sadness and happiness were mutually exclusive emotions. They are not. When Sonia and Matt completed their traditional marriage ceremonial rites I had this poignant experience.
Poignancy is when you are feeling sad and happy at the same time. Yes. I was sad in a way that we were giving our only daughter away in marriage and I know for myself that my relationship with her had changed forever that day and in a way I had never imagined. And yet at the same time, I was very happy and overjoyed.
Another time in my life this happened, was when I decided to end my 20 year marriage. I had experienced incredible sadness and yet was happy for my ex-husband because he loved someone else and I realized he was not happy at the state of our marriage. He is an incredible father to our children and that is a true Blessing!
This is a hard lesson to learn that you can be happy and sad at the same time.
Look into your own life where you may be struggling with sadness. When you understand that sadness and happiness can co exist at the same time, you will stop resisting sadness. You will start to see sadness, as I have, that it is a great Gift in your life, creating a contextual “field” within which happiness is appreciated in a deeper way. It is our darkness that makes our Light that much brighter.
Gratitude is the most powerful tool to heal any situation in your life no matter how hard it may seem. There is grace in every pit you fall into, if only you will stop arguing with life, drop expectations and have compassion with yourself.
Try this and see for yourself: Before you go to sleep last thing at night and first thing in the morning when you awaken, give thanks for all the people, situations and experiences happening in your life.
Gratitude transforms anger, frustration, sadness and disappointment into openness and being with what is happening in your life right now.
My life is not perfect and I experience moments of impatience and frustration. Thankfully, it’s much less often now! I believe the real secret to happiness and joy is totally believing in and living life in the present moment where God/Divine resides. And not living life in the past because past is only a memory and the future is a mystery.
Painful situations are just that. You cannot deny or pretend it’s not happening or that you are not feeling sad. It is a condition in your life but stop labeling it as problematic.
By practicing being in the present moment, by this awareness, miracles happen again and again! Sadness and suffering as just one part of this miraculous process, the Great Divine Plan that is getting you exactly where you want to go in life.The Beatles had it right. Just let it be. The wisdom within will show you the way forward!
P.S. In my Ultimate SoulClarity and Personal Freedom Course, you can discover many more practices and tools, and much support, for making this shift into Living An Abundant, Happy, Peaceful and Fulfilled Life. Registration is open and you can find out all the Course details here!