I was in my teenage years when I realized that I developed a lot of hatred to almost everyone around me. I thought that by hating, I will automatically magnetize people to come and rescue me from all my hatred and fears. I value the people around me, but my doubts brought me closer to just hate and see who will stick with me. In the course of my adolescence, I was just a lost and curious sheep; waiting to be saved.
Forgiving and acceptance were two words impossible for me to digest way back; asking them from me was a hard and bitter pill to swallow. Now that I am approaching thirty, I realized that there are still parts of me which are well established in the wrong sense. There are times when I still feel and think that by being argumentative, I will be able to share what I truly feel. However, I am continuously teaching myself the art of letting go and living life; free of doubts and anger. There’s entirely a long list of ways on how to create, generate and keep anger, but at the end of the day, life will only bring us back to loving.
Before the start of 2015, I have created a list of things I have learned over the years of growing and discovery. I would gladly share everything.
1. Love your enemies.
Do not harbor hatred on your heart; have a room for forgiveness. Time does not heal all wounds. Time only holds all your anger and creates a negative energy in your life. Turn your enemies into friends.
2. Discover the beauty in forgiveness.
Forgiveness may be hard to do, but it will take you to places. Loving your neighbor may be difficult as well, but learn to accept that everyone commits mistakes. In order to grow, do not cherish that anger and learn to let it go.
3. Acceptance is the key to understanding.
Do not be narrow-minded. Learn how to understand that there are different types of people, and you are one of them. You are not perfect; therefore allow mistakes to shape you into something imperfect yet beautiful.
4. Make room for improvements.
While it is great to accept and understand the mistakes of others, you should still be fully aware that you have a responsibility to correct your neighbors’ mistakes. Acceptance is not enough if you are not going to improving bad decisions.
5. Do not worry about the things which you do not have control over.
I always worry. I worry from the smallest to the biggest things. On days when I have the biggest worries, I cannot sleep. I realized that it is not healthy for me. Worrying on things will only be a waste of time. Learn how to make solutions instead of focusing on worrying about your problems.
6. Breathe and be happy.
Life goes on. People come and go. Do not fear of losing and accepting your mistakes. Learn how to ask forgiveness and always forgive others. Do not hold that fear and anger inside you, because it could destroy you in the future.
Photo credits to Driver Layer.