A friend of mine recently had her boyfriend of many years break up with her unexpectedly. In her own words, she was “shell shocked.”
I was reminded of some words of wisdom someone shared with me years ago, which I shared with her.
It is important to accept and acknowledge pain and joy in life. Being honest and owning up to your feelings is a freeing process. No one likes to hurt, but acknowledging it certainly brings things into perspective.
It is important to do something kind and pampering for yourself every day, even if it’s just a long walk, a few moments of meditation, taking in a good movie, reading a good book, keeping a journal, having a pleasant daydream. As adults, we forget to play and use our imagination. It’s okay to bring out the inner child in ourselves because it is a part of who we are.
We all know deep down what truly makes us happy and it’s okay to follow our hearts. Doubt is never a good way to feel. We should follow the paths in life that bring us genuine happiness and peace. However simplistic it may seem, maybe the words of wisdom we need to know are written in fortune cookies sometimes. I opened up a fortune cookie the other day and it said, “Let your heart be your guide.” It was good advice.
It’s all right to cry and feel sadness, but when those feelings overwhelm us and there is a sense of hopelessness, it’s not a sign of weakness or lack of character to get help and support when we need it most. Self-improvement and problem solving is a wonderful characteristic.
I try to remember it’s not whether we win or lose, but that we participated. Life is a journey and we must remember that we are all contributing positive things to the world. I once heard a quote that said we may essentially be one person to the world, but the world to one person. It is important to remember that we all matter, we all have something to offer, and we all leave an important impact upon the world.
I told my friend in closing, “Seek a life of joy and wisdom and know there are people there for you. Hang tough, sister; you matter.”
