There’s that moment when you realize you made a huge mistake.
OK, take a little time to absorb what you did (or didn’t do). But a very little time because the truth is, there are no mistakes, just choices. There is a reason you made that choice — although you may not know it yet. It wasn’t random or an accident, though.
That choice you made doesn’t require you to go to battle with yourself. That choice or action came from an unacknowledged part of you and was the right one for you in the moment. Maybe you just don’t see how yet.
So wherever you are in life, value the journey. Even if where you are is the result of what you now see as the biggest mistake of your life. Be where you are, now, in this moment, on this journey. The steps behind you were already taken, and the steps to come are potential waiting to happen. Bring the fullness of this moment into that future.
Here are some ways to find value in this moment of your journey when you are living with the consequences of a choice or action you’re tempted to view as a mistake:
1. Appreciate your opportunity to come to know those instincts that caused you to make that decision or take those actions. Appreciate those instincts. While you’re at it, expand your circle of appreciation to include yourself, your family, your friends, your dog or cat, your home, that beautiful flower outside your door, the sun on the water, the fact that you’re alive.
2. This is a step in your journey. Remember that you’ll see choices or actions in a different way from the vantage point of a place further along your path.
3. Remember that your journey continues and what you experience in this moment enriches your next moment. Be fully present in it, and take the fullness of the moment forward with you. Every moment of experience gives you more information and knowledge and insight and experience and know-how to use as you continue your journey. Every step makes you who you are.
4. Think about how you’d like to use the next moment of your life and whatever it brings. Or where you’d next like to place your foot as you continue on your path.
5. Steps. It’s all about steps. Keep walking that path. Sure, stop to reflect from time to time. Stop to smell the flowers. Enjoy your companions along the way. But continue your journey, and let your “mistakes” contribute positively to it.
Life is a journey, and our achievements and our mistakes are all steps on the path, all make us who we are, create the moment we are in and can positively influence the rest of our journey if we let them.
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