As we move into a new year and embrace a new decade we've all got lots we can choose to remain angry about. Old wrongs and bad business deals, lost jobs, and self confidence that's been tested and cracked. Maybe even our body betrayed us.
In preparing for a seminar last week I came across a quote from Oprah Winfrey that really resonated with me. I share it with you here.
"Forgiveness is letting go of the hope that the past can be changed."
"Letting go of hope?" to a Mary Poppins optimist like me, these are fighting words bordering on blasphemy!
Then I happened to land on some chick flick the other night (PS: I Love You). I know, I'm not proud of it. And in my defense I didn't watch the whole thing. But a message I did get from it, is towards the end of the movie where the Mom is talking to her daughter and says (paraphrased).
"I've been angry for so long. I'm tired of being angry. It's exhausting."We shouldn't allow ourselves to be exhausted going into a new year and a new decade. We shouldn't choose to carry old baggage with us. It
is exhausting, slows us down. And there is much to be done.
What a relief for an optimist to finally be able to acknowledge that you can let go of past hope and move on.
"The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference." Elie Wiesel
If love and hate play off each other as equally strong emotions, then maybe only by moving to a state of indifference can we wipe the slate clean and begin to entertain new adventures with new hope.
A decade has ended and a new year begun. My toast for you is to start fresh by forgiving yourself and letting go of the hope that the past can be changed.
The adventure awaits, again.
I
hope for you a
Happy New Year!"You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land, there is no other life but this."
Henry David Thoreau
