“Part of our difficulty in dealing with traffic jams et al is that we have come to view them as unusual. Somewhere along the line we failed to notice that life is.
In our illusionary approach to our lives we have been able to fool ourselves into thinking that things should go right and . . . we have a very specific idea of what “right” is. We have come to believe that the easy, the problemless, the fun are “normal” and everything else is abnormal or bad. We have predetermined what life is or should be and we expect it to run smoothly along those lines.” – Anne Wilson Schaef
The above selection is from a morning meditation book that I read every day. I really had to think about this one. I agree that we shouldn’t let the small gripes and aggravations (traffic jams, spills, headaches, etc.) get us down or view these happenings, as really out of the ordinary. At the same time, the big highs and the big lows are rarities. The big highs and the big lows stand out to us, because they don’t happen all of the time. If we let it be, life is usually relatively calm, mild and uneventful.
What I have been reading and meditating on lately, all comes down to acceptance. I think acceptance means to let life play itself out without resistance, particularly a resistance to circumstances that we don’t have any power to change. Acceptance means letting go. Acceptance means to stop adding to our own suffering by commiserating constantly over unchangeable happenings that make us angry, sad, miserable, etc.
The serenity prayer, in my mind, is one of the most helpful, wise tomes of wisdom, ever written and one of the most useful tools ever made, if we make it a practice.
The Serenity Prayer
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.