One of the secrets to a fulfilling life is to daily recognize exactly where my commitments lie. I speak not of appointments, but to principles, to the guiding purpose of my life. My primary commitment is to God, to love itself. To be it and see it as the most important thing in my life, day in and day out. I’m committed to taking good care of myself, but sometimes I forget and have to be reminded, never chastised, instead gently but firmly reminded (self care doesn’t include punishment as motivation).
Sometimes I let my commitment to myself be forgotten in my commitment to being loving with others. I notice that many people suffer from feeling that others don’t keep their commitments. They haven’t made a commitment to themselves and their world is reflecting that. I spoke with an apartment manager who said that if the owner asked her to do something that she felt was unkind to a tenant she’d have to do it because that was her job. Her commitment was to the owner, rather than kindness. How many times a day do we see that kind of choice in peoples’ commitments play out in our lives?
Do we get angry with people who forget to be kind or don’t value kindness and generosity? Who among us has not had this lapse? Shall we throw the first stone? Or will choose to have a commitment to compassion?
Sometimes people are committed to being kind and loving with others, but not themselves. Some are committed to service, but their commitment collapses if they don’t feel like it when the time comes to perform the service. In a world where there are so many wonderful things to do I want to commit to doing less of them so that I have more time to just be wonderful unto myself and my loved ones. I find it a challenging commitment to keep and I see the price I pay for not keeping my agreements. I need to keep my commitments because the quality of my life reflects the integrity of my commitments.
Today I ask myself, what am I REALLY committed to? I make a list of my deep commitments and of the commitments that I waiver on. Without judging myself I make a new commitment and put it in writing. Today, through my commitments I align my life with my spirit in the purest sense. In doing so, I profoundly move the world in a direction of integrity and the peace that comes with it.
Affirmation
I AM committed to being consistently loving.