Wherever you go, there YOU are

By Martha O’Regan
That’s right: You can never get away from you, no matter how hard you try. And, to face more truth, you are responsible for you.  There is no one else out there who knows you or can take care of you better than you.  Not your spouse, doctor, parent, partner, child, sibling, no one. You are your greatest ally as well as your worst enemy.  Only you can get you in trouble and only you can get you out. It is you who makes choices — both good and bad. So, you may as well just sit down and introduce yourself to you and decide it’s time to be friends and begin working together for your higher good.  Simple, just not easy at first.
Admittedly, it was a bit of a bummer when I became aware that I was a steward of this vessel that I inhabit each day.  No more excuses, no more waiting for the miraculous alternative to exercising or cheeseburgers, no more, “if only this, that or the other thing would occur, then I will be happy” statements. I had to dig in there and “re-connect” with all of me. “Mind, meet body. Body, meet spirit. Spirit meet mind.”
Now that the introductions were complete, we had to figure out our new arrangement. No longer could mind override spirit in getting my body in gear or choosing a healthy alternative to that cheeseburger.  Now that we had recognized our relationship, body became more in tune to mind’s ramblings to ignore spirit.
As an example, mind says, “Oh, just turn off that alarm clock and skip the workout. Who will know anyway?” Uh hum, spirit will, then mind will have to hear about it all day, eventually fatiguing the body from carrying the guilt all day.
So not worth it — better to just listen to spirit and get up!  Ultimately, body and mind feel better, and spirit is happy — it’s all good. However, I must say, this goes on regularly within me, but as long as I know spirit has my highest good in mind, I try to listen to it rather than my mind.
What about you? Do you know all of you? Give it a try, have some fun with it. Give each entity a name and establish a working dialogue amongst them — I have found that all three prefer kindness and ease more than annoyance and sarcasm.
As I nurtured this relationship within myself, I also became aware that this is my life, no one else’s. Not in a selfish “it’s all about me” energy, but an “oh my gosh, this is my life, what am I going to do with it?” energy. What are my hopes, dreams and desires and how am I going to achieve them and who will be a part of it, and, and, and?
Being a steward of my vessel and getting to know all of me was no longer a bummer but rather a gift. I decided that taking time for me, doing what I love to do, being with who I love to be with and doing it authentically with kindness and ease was far better than where I was before my “ah ha” moment.
There is still the daily debate amongst the three of us — body, mind and spirit — but now it’s with delightful banter. I invite you to get to know all of you and enjoy the rest of your ride here on planet earth since it’s where you are and you have to take you wherever you go anyway.
In Joy … Enjoy! Live Well … Have Fun!