Love yourself

I don't know about you, but I don't feel that it's my vehicle that is essential.  I don't know about you, but I don't feel that it's my education that is essential.  I don't think what is essential about me is my house or my car or myclothes.  What is essential about me?  Well, I think what is essential is that I live and embrace  life right now, wherever I am.  I grab it in my arms!  Don't spend time crying about yesterday--yesterday is over with!  I forgive my past.  I forgive the people who've hurt me.  I don't want to spend the rest of my life blaming and pointing a finger.  I get so sick and tired of hearing people gripe about what their parents did to them. 

 You know what your parents did to you?  The best thing they coulddo.  The best thing they knew how, the only thing in many cases that they knew how.  Nobody has set out maliciously to hurt their child, unless they were psychotic.
Can you forgive?  Can you forget?  Can you say it's "OK"?  Can you say, "They are people, too"? and you take them in your arms andembrace them?  Then take your self in your arms.  Find out again that you are special, that you are unique, that you are wondrous, that in all the world there is only one of you.

  Hug yourself, you sweet old thing!  Sure you've screwed up, and sometimes you do dumb things and you forget that you are a human being, but the most wonderful thing about you is that, no matter where you are, you have potential to grow.  You are just starting.  There is only this much of you now, and there is an infinite amount to discover and to find!  Don't spend your time crying!  Forgiveothers!  Forgive yourself.  Forgive yourself for not being perfect.  And accept responsibility for your own life.

Nikos Kazantzakis says, "You have your brush, you have your colors, youpaint paradise, then in you go."  Do it!!  Take orange and magenta and blue and purple. . . and green, and yellow--and paint your paradise.  You can dothat!  You can do it right now.  It's your life that is essential.

Fantastic statement.  It doesn't matter who you have hurt, if you've learned not to hurt again.  It doesn't matter what mistakes you've made as long as you don't make them again.  As long as you learn, as long as you're willing to take your life in your own hands, and kiss it and go on from there.  Then there is growth.  Then there is life!