BE KIND TO YOUR SELF

My older brother, who decided to shuck his body for greater adventures, almost six months ago, always ended a message with the recommendation to BE NICE TO YOURSELF or BE KIND TO YOURSELF. On the surface, my brother and I didn't have many points of agreement; but, on this point we were totally in accord.

So many of us are just learning how to be friends to ourselves. We grew up in a culture that equated loving yourself with self-centeredness or selfishness. It is easy to argue, that self-centeredness and selfishness, comes from not having a high regard for yourself. They are both fruits of being afraid that we are not good enough. They are defenses, to the fear, that we may not be lovable.

On our journey, back to ONENESS, I have recommended self-assessment. Unfortunately, self-assessment can morph into self-criticism, which I don't recommend. We need to see how we are stuck and it helps to see, why we are stuck. We have been taught to see ourselves negatively. We have been taught, we are aggressive, competitive and exclusive. These are all things that, not so subtlety, play into our low self esteem and make us easier to  control.

To break out of the mold, that we have been caste in, we must learn to love ourselves. People who love themselves are unwilling to be sheep. People who love themselves, are unwilling to let other people, say what they should think.

Seeing how we are stuck, so we can move on, is helpful. Criticism and judgement is never helpful; it just gives the stuckness more energy.

Some mentors have suggested a self-assessment when we go to bed at night. However, I suggest, it is not a good idea. It is too easy to veer into judgement. It is not a good idea to fall asleep in the midst of judging ourselves. Of course, self-assessment, is not the problem; what we assess is the problem. Instead of assessing error and limitation, lets assess accomplishment; especially loving accomplishment.

As we lay in bed, preparing for sleep, let us survey all the loving feelings we had. Let us remember the joy we experienced. Let us remember our kindness, both given and received. Let us remember the little triumphs over our own perceived limitations. To say it another way, let's be friends to ourselves. Let us treat ourselves as we would treat a best friend. Let us be kind to ourselves. Let us go to sleep basked in a warm glow of love.

We have heard from our mentors, numerous times, we can only love others to the degree we love ourselves. We have known it intellectually, but our programming is difficult to overcome. Self- judgement comes easy to us, and we don't perceive, that we are limiting the fountain of love that we are. Yes, we are love, and any negative comment, we believe about ourselves, can limit the flow.

More and more of us are understanding the concept of Oneness. What we do to any of us, we do to all of us. When we attack ourselves, we attack everyone. When we love ourselves, we love everyone. It is simply; that, we are indeed, ONE.

Let us take my Brother Bruce's recommendations. BE KIND TO YOURSELF. BE NICE TO YOURSELF.

Love and Peace,  Gregg