Human beings seek to survive, grow and thrive. This happens physically, emotionally and intellectually.
The puzzling thing is that people do not accomplish this at the same rate. The length of time it takes a person to mature depends on several factors, including ability, parenting, resources, and motivation.
It is an understatement to say it hurts when you breakup. We have all felt it. Not only does it hurt, it turns your life upside down. In many cases, large parts of your routine must be rearranged, changed and rebuilt.
You go from being a couple or a family to being a partial family or just one person. Your routines change, activities change, and friends change. You may even have to find new living arrangements and/or new sources of income.
The “moving on” process takes time and is better done if you pay attention to yourself and where you are in the process. If you find yourself having a hard time moving forward, letting go of your ex, and building your own life, it might be helpful to ask yourself some important questions. The answers can guide you to better understand yourself.
Don’t take your love away from me
Don’t you leave my heart in misery
If you go then I’ll be blue
‘Cause breaking up is hard to do
In 1962, Neil Sedaka’s song “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do” became a huge hit, especially among people going through a breakup and the angst that follows. They could identify with misery and the blues.
Time has shown that he not only hit the mark during the 60’s, but in every generation since. This song has been covered and re-released frequently in the last 53 years.
When Albert Einstein met Charlie Chaplin, Einstein said,“What I most admire about your art, is your universality. You don’t say a word, yet the world understands you!”
Silent film star Charlie Chaplin epitomizes the power of nonverbal communication. Think about it for a moment: he mastered the use of facial expressions and body language to convey messages in a medium where words were not an option. He did so to such a degree that in 1998 – well into the age when words, music, and CGI could tell the story in the movies – film critic Andrew Sarris called Chaplin “arguably the single most important artist produced by the cinema, certainly its most extraordinary performer and probably still its most universal icon”.
Chaplin can help us understand what we were talking about last week: the importance of showing up. When you show up there will be a language spoken, even if words are not. As in Chaplin’s day, it will be the language of your body. Experiences and feelings are expressed by your movements, your posture, your silence, and your stillness. Continue reading
I HAVE A DREAM
This is the day we commemorate the short life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. While he is adored and respected today, when he was alive he was feared and hated because he was working for radical change. He called for people to alter the structure of society, and to do so would require individuals to change from the inside.
“We have moved from the era of civil rights to the era of human rights, an era where we are called upon to raise certain basic questions about the whole society.”
The message he brought to the world, and to the cause he championed, was far larger than segregation. He worked for justice, equality and peace. He opposed militarism and violence of any kind, yet he believed it takes action – nonviolent action – to bring about change.
