I was Skyping with my mom the other night. Actually, for her in India, it was morning. You know, I’m 50-years-old yet the lessons keep coming. Somehow, she and I got into a philosophical conversation, and my mother said, “It’s important to be grateful not only for the ‘good’ things that happen in our lives, but for the ‘bad’ occurrences too.”
I grokked that what I was hearing is an important Truth. For instance, in CalmUp® Journey: Your Daily Ascending Tool for Better Days, I teach that, “We need all parts of ourselves to create our wholeness.” In fact, this statement is written on the CalmUp® Journey map itself. When we accept that the darkness in our lives is not about “bad,” and the lightness is not about “good,” then it makes sense to open to gratitude for everything—that’s the wholeness approach.
I’ve been thinking about what my mom said all week. Although my head gets it, my heart is having a tough time. As I sit with an elderly woman with dementia who had her home stolen from her and as I scrutinize some of my own life experiences, how is one to be grateful? Night/Day. Dark/Light. How is it that a person’s tragedy can also be a blessing? Fortunately, I don’t need to figure it all out on my own.