For a lot of us, we don’t often get taught how to deal with heartache, how to deal with emotions, or even how to express ourselves properly. As with most things in our lives, we learn from trial and error.
I don’t recall ever being taught how to deal with heartache. How to deal with emotions. Or even how to express myself properly. As with most everything in my life, I’ve had to learn from trial and error, yet it wouldn’t be until much later in life that I would recognize more fully some the consequences and challenges of my errors.
Errors in my approach, error in my thinking, error in my ability to communicate, and most challenging were the errors I would make in dealing with the strong emotions that would begin to surface in my life.
I recently came across a quote that had a deep affect on me.
“Thinking without
– John Braddock author of A Spy’s Guide to Thinkingaction, is useless.”
As someone who has spent years being lost in thought, deep inside my own mind, analyzing my relationships, my conversations, my experiences, and interactions with others – sincerely seeking to gain wisdom and make better choices than I have in the past, I realized that all of my thinking, all of my effort to try and figure this life out, would be utterly pointless, if I don’t implement what I’ve learned in my own life, and also try and share my conclusions with others.
Prior attempts to implement and share what I am learning have felt like disasters. I have made mistakes.
I’ve been making a list of things I am working on and attempting to document what they are teaching me, here is an outline:
- Anger ———> Compassion / Tenderness
- Frustration ———> Patience, Humility
- Hurt/Pain ———> Wisdom
- Confusion ———> Learning / Understanding
- Stubbornness ———> Humility / an open heart
- Sarcasm ———> Kindness
- Insecurity ———> Self Love, Acceptance
- Falsely Accused ———> Get my own house in order.
For many of my adult years, I have tried to fight against the words on the left. I have tried to avoid them, run from them, keep them hidden, and even try and let them go. I am learning that has been an error in my approach.
These words have served a purpose. A significant purpose.
Photo Credit: Matthew McLelland / Los Angeles, CA