Category Archives: Faith
To Learn to Love Ourselves
“There is luxury in self-reproach. When we blame ourselves, we feel no one else has a right to blame us.” — Oscar Wilde
Just as we don’t have the right to judge someone else, we don’t have the right to judge ourselves. Our unhealthy script in the past was that when we did something we felt ashamed of, we judged ourselves guilty. All too often, we then punished ourselves. Was that behavior an expression of our shame and sadness because of our defects? Punishing ourselves won’t stop our unhealthy behaviors; loving ourselves will.
We are grateful that our growth in our emotional health has taught us the difference between guilt and shame. Guilt lets us feel remorse and sadness when our actions violate our values. Guilt helps us know when we’ve acted badly; shame tells us we are bad. Guilt gives us a way back to ourselves through making amends; shame leaves us hopeless. To give in to shame and self-hatred only harms us and intensifies the power of our unhealthy behaviors. There is a better way, and that’s to learn to love us.
Related Articles
- Guilt’s end. (charioteers.org)
- Pain and Suffering (psychologytoday.com)
- Guilt Be Gone! (companionsoflyme.wordpress.com)
You Are In Integrity
“You are in integrity when the life you live is an authentic expression of who you are.” — Alan Cohen
Related Articles
- Affirmations Create Positive Energy (christophersmark.wordpress.com)
- When Decisions are Made Out of Fear (christophersmark.wordpress.com)
- Integrate Healthy Sexuality Into Life (christophersmark.wordpress.com)
- The Silva Method: Mental Housekeeping (christophersmark.wordpress.com)
I Feel As Though I’ve Lost My Way In This World
“If you are alone, I’ll be your shadow. If you want to cry, I’ll be your shoulder. If you need to be happy, I’ll be your smile. But anytime you need a friend, I’ll just be me.” — Source unknown.
My life seems so incredibly fucked up now. Even I have grown tired of the constant, seemingly endless drama that I consistently seem to manifest about me.
I have shared openly and with honest and authentic admission that I have not always lived life as a man of integrity. Lies, deceptions, illusions, delusions once filled my life. No one really knew who I was back then. The pain that I carry, the result of the shame, guilt and true remorse are difficult to still bear. I make my own best attempts to forgive myself and live by the commitments I have made to a life of rigorous honesty. I revel in my new, authentic life and the easy cadence it brings.
However there are some who I have hurt in the past that refuse to see me as the man I am today and not the fool I was before. Rather than try to see my progress, I am forced to swallow the bile of their resentments and my born again guilt. I reach out to them at times like this for their love and support. How many times can I hit “rock bottom” and how much worse can it get? The problems I face in my life now contribute to anxiety and that feeling of being “lost.” I have people; friends or “family of choice” with one best friend Trish who is so calm, patient and willing to learn, that I truly know what unconditional love feels like. She very well could be that angel I’ve asked for!
When does it ever stop? What do these “detractors” get from holding their resentments so dear? When can I be seen as the man I am today, rather than the monster of my past? How can family turn-off their love and sit idly by while I grow more and more lost, alone and afraid? I have begged for their help. Their refusal is like a nightmare; if they needed my help I wouldn’t think twice. I would do what I could. I still love them, even now, as they turn away.
I have worked so hard and tried to follow a path toward personal growth. I’ve learned so much along the way, but now I feel so lost in my fears and find myself dwelling in these feelings of abandonment and betrayal. These behaviors I know are preventing me from initiating my solution to my challenges. I want to learn whatever it is I am supposed to from this lesson and move on. I want a life filled with the love and joy of family and friends.
Please, send me an angel…
Related Articles
- The Mother of all Depressions (christophersmark.wordpress.com)
- Regaining Lost Pride and Lost Hope (christophersmark.wordpress.com)
- Lost in Life is Like Being Lost at Sea (christophersmark.wordpress.com)
- Tired of Turmoil and Clutter in Life? (christophersmark.wordpress.com)
Mark's Weblog 