And So It Goes

And so it goes . . .
We’ve been here before. We’ve been through tough times. We’ve seen harder days and better ones too. But hey, this is life and there are no guarantees. The second show is never the same as the first but then again, you only get one shot. So, there is no second show.
What I am about to do is share a brutal piece of honesty with you. It’s not pretty. But pretty or not, truth is still truth.

We can’t recreate the past. We can’t take back what was said nor can we uncross the boundaries. In the end, when we face the anxiety of humiliation and exploitation, the question is no longer why or or how did this happen. Instead, the question becomes what am I going to do about it?
How am I going to improve?

Even if it seems as if all hope is lost, now what? Do I give in?
Do I allow the anxieties to take control?
Do I let the emotions continue to add inaccurate math?
Or, do I stop the momentum?
Rather than sink to the machine in my head, how do I change my thinking?

I can do a lot of things, right?
And so can you?
I can breathe.
I can change my patterns.
I can improve and this remains true – even if I have no one in my corner or even if I have no friends, I can still improve.
Or, I can replace thought with action.
(We say this a lot. Don’t we?)
I can change my steps to change my thinking which, in turn, will change my feelings and then my behavior. Right?
We can do all of the above. We can do anything and while we might know the right things to do, it’s not the steps that we have to take – it’s the application that gives us some trouble.

I see no reason to be dishonest and say that life is easy. I see no reason in being dishonest and reporting that recovery of any kind is simple.
Everything hurts before it heals. And we all know this from an intellectual standpoint. But emotions and intellect do not always run hand in hand.
Oftentimes, our intellect runs away from our emotions or vice/versa.
I see no reason to act or pretend that there is no such thing as a hard time.

Life is hard. The truth is a hard pill to swallow and in the end, there’s no one there and it’s just you against you.
I get it.
Let’s not pretend that any of this is easy. Let’s not act like the world is always on our side. Instead, let’s understand that realism is not the same as pessimism. Sometimes, you have to take the fall. Sometimes, consequences are unavoidable.
You have to take it on the chin and when this happens, trust me, this is when the consequences hit.
This is where the pain and shame come in. 
(Because you know better; yet, you still acted out of line.)

One great lesson is that you can’t save your ass and your face at the same time. You can save one or the other.
But you can’t save both.
There are times in life when all you can do is face the music.
Keep your chin up and your shoulders back.
Take what comes. It’s okay to be pissed. It’s fine to be honest about what you think or feel.
It’s not always going to be an easy ride; but then again, it won’t always be a rough one either. 

It can’t storm forever. So, look for the break in the clouds.
Smile when the sun comes out.
Live for the moment and learn what you can.
And remember; this is your life. 
There is no sequel. 

Now go and sin no more.