These are trying times in America. There’s so much angst, injustice and distrust; anger and hate filled commentary espousing democracy from the depths of hate filled hearts, inciting fear based rhetoric and distorted truths. We have become a nation of liars and deflectors, who thrive on unchristian like behaviors. Can this be our true color rising up from the bosoms of our inauthentic selves? It would appear that hope is no longer alive and yet, from God’s grace and from the strength of the ancestors, we prove again and again that the devil and his demons are a liar. We must keep bringing the light!
As the struggle continues those of us on the side of fair and just must continue to be encouraged. I’ve had to embrace the reality that I’m not going to be liked by many people because of the skin I’m in. I’ve also had to come to the realization that your opinion of me i none of my business because I’m so loving my who, whose and why of me. I’ve grown in faith and possibility from living in awareness over a period of five decades and this keeps me hopeful and encouraged by humanity and serves as a foundation from which I write to be of encouragement to you. As the great late poet Ms. Gwendolyn Brooks once advised me, I now advise you, to “Keep-a-Going!”
Here are five 5 Great Insights That Can Lead You to a Life of Authenticity & Accountability and allow you to become a better you.
1. Know who you are. Who are we really? From where do we hail? Learn the history of family/roots/your beginnings/family ambitions/morals/values/spirituality/ their obstacles & triumphs…find out from whence you came.
2. Trust your intuitiveness. A lot of people call your innermost feelings, your intuition at work. A lot of the elders call it, “a gift” from god. I tend to lean toward this knowing as being both a spiritually awakening and a special something that we all have, but haven’t known how to embrace. As a little girl, I’ve always had an uncanny sense of perception where I could basically read a person’s truth after an initial introduction. I don’t say I’m gifted, just that I take advantage of my intuitive sensory perceptions!
3. Keep the faith. This simple affirmation isn’t simple, really. It takes a lot as a spiritual being, living a human existence, to keep faith alive. Amid trials & tribulations, loss and pain, hunger, greed and homelessness, sickness and death, hate and separatism, discrimination and injustice, we’re living life experiences. We must stay in prayer, bring awareness to the unjust, keep the faith and keep sharing the love for self and for others. According to Martin Luther King, love is the only thing that can drive out hate… and for me, where love is God is!
4. Love Yourself. How can you love someone else, when you don’t have self-love? Learn to give of yourself but never to the point of becoming a do-gooder that threatens to deplete your positive energies. Learn to say no. In the words of Wes Moore, author of The Work, “Don’t let people that don’t matter too much matter too much.” If people can’t accept your authenticity they certainly won’t want to walk in theirs. Just say a prayer for them and keep-a-going!
5. Doubt the fear. This is a biggie even for me. I’ve been fearful of change in the past, but I’ve accepted that in order to grow, there must be positive change in the right direction. Take stock of where you are on your journey to wholeness and refuse to live your one life, bitter. What’s holding you back? Ask yourself if you will continue to live in fear of the unknown, of change? And are you happy where you are? Life is a gamble, but we only have this one human life and we deserve to live it happy, healthy, whole and accountable!
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