by David Pavek

As we work to be centered in our lives, at the very same time, other are looking at their memories and mirrors  as well. Just as everyone is equal in that they put on one pant leg at a time, take comfort from the fact that everyone else must look at their past as they try to live a balanced life. The people who appear to live in a state of inner peace and tranquility had to engage in retrospection. As another writer on this topic states:

One thing you begin taking for granted is that every person you meet who seems to have courage, dignity, compassion, and humility has experienced failure and weakness and shame. So don’t be an egomaniac and feel like you’re a worse one than the next. Everybody’s got stuff. Our spiritual victory rests only on what we are willing to do with it.

Bo Lozoff, Deep and Simple, p. 28.

If you have been looking for calm and tranquility in your life, but you have not found it yet, don’t be disappointed.  We all have a past, and we all have to work to manage it. It is likely that even when you start to really look hard at the past, your vision of your memories still causes pain and hurt. It will help to know that we all have such memories. However, the process of reflection is a big part of the process of balance.

From this balance, you’ll find the strength and capacity to look harder, and you’ll see with even more clarity.. You’ll find the center of your emotions and your awareness. In short, your efforts to manage your past are going to make you feel centered and prepared for inner peace.