I Promise Myself...Strong

So...

The other day I found this, and I know that it wasn't random. This was me finding exactly what I needed to hear. Christian D. Larson penned this and I find it to be worth repeating everyday. In fact, it is now hanging at my desk, right above my computer where I can look at it and read it over and over again like a mantra.

Promise Yourself
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel that there is something worthwhile in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful expression at all times and give a smile to every living creature you meet.
To give so much time to improving yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud word, but in great deeds.
To live in the faith that the whole world is on your side, so long as you are true to the best that is in you.
Christian D Larson

For me, in order for something to be effective, I have to repeat it. I have to break it down and analyze it and relate it to ME and MY life, and what is happening in my life. So there are 12 statements, and so for the next 12 days, I am breaking these down for me.

I promise myself to be so strong that nothing can disturb my peace of mind.

Strength is a choice. Strength is something to build on, and make greater over time, yes, but it is also a choice. You can choose to be strong in any given situation, or you can choose to be a pussy.

I want peace of mind. In fact, I want more than that. I want peace of life. I want contentment, and the only way to have that is to choose to harness my strength, even though I may feel like pulling the covers over my head for about a month, or year. I won't do that.

Richard Byrd said, "Few men during their lifetime come anywhere near exhausting the resources dwelling within them. There are deep wells of strength that are never used."

I want to USE my strength. I know it is there. Coming from a marriage of 10 years and then a 3 year volatile relationship, I used my strength everyday. But if you asked me then, I would tell you I was not strong, that I was a pussy. I felt I was sacrificing what I wanted and who I was for someone else, doing a complete disservice to me. And what kind of example does that set for lil man????

Shit happens everyday. This morning, I got a heartbreaking, potentially crushing email, which, I very easily could let define my choices. But I won't.

I promise myself to be strong. For me. I deserve that. And so do you.

We are so much stronger than we give ourselves credit for. But we have to choose to be strong. We have to choose to stand up and fight the small battles everyday, even when it may feel better to crawl into bed and pull the covers over. Life is about the experiences and LIVING the experiences. And we must use our strength to live it.

Promise yourself to be so strong that nothing will disturb your peace of mind.

Be strong today.

LMS