Continues from Part 1
We can take a look at our lives as a continuous sequence of changes where we are partly in control of our futures. Our challenge is to be able to live up to the situations that life throws at us without growing too attached to a set of ideas about who we are and what we should be in life. I'm having to learn that lesson over again as I rethink my choices in life. Admittedly, if you consider the nature of suffering in Buddhist teachings, one realises that the account of reality we were invited to embrace is not a sweet pill to swallow. But no truth is easy to digest.W e sometimes refrain from taking important decisions in our daily life out of fear or because deep inside we want what we can't possibly have. In my case, a number of health issues have forced me to rethink my priorities and change the path I thought I had to follow to be of value. \
It isn't the first time that my body forced me to rethink my life. It happened when I had to abandon my Masters degree for a while, only to engage in another one as I grew used to a visual impairment I had acquired on top of my mobility impairment. At the time, I thought that this was the end to my life and happiness but time would reveal that there were many people out there who were ready to help and provide me with support. Indeed, this event changed me in many ways and introduced me to a new life, new friends and, eventually, to new opportunities
. You have a choice and I chose to continue not out of bravery or determination but because, it was that or a fall into an abyss of depression and self-pity. It was a question of survival.
It is then that you appreciate how precious life is. How you can't take anything for granted. How a single action - a single choice - can not only change your life but even your personality and outlook on life. and it sets you thinking whether there is something tangible and real about who you presume you are. Then you wonder whether you're living up to your fullest and whether you're doing your best - even when faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles. when you find yourself, like I have, in a time where there' seems to be no hope. But, then you know., that as even the mightiest mountain will turn into dust, even the darkest of moments will be illuminated by the light of hope. as we grow in our understanding of who we are, the obscurity of ignorance will be overpowered by the light of wisdom.
I ask you why deny ourselves the opportunity to cultivate peace into our own hearts? Why do we have to rely on things outside us to be happy? And isn't more important to be true to ourselves rather than a slave to our desires and cravings that, if uncontrolled, will burn us out. My current position in life is delicate and full of confusion and fear. But I find refuge in knowing that no matter how bad things may get, the hard times will pass. Of that I'm sure.
But, in order for us to find true peace and happiness, it's important to be willing to give up our need to own the world and stop attempting everything in our power to preserve what, ultimately, is empty and illusionary. In our journey to find our true purpose, it's vital that we are able to respond to what the core of our being is telling us without preoccupying our thoughts with things that aren't that important..
And, what is my inner being telling me?
Continues...
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