At times life can get so crazy we need something to hold on to balance ourselves. Here are four Simple Promises you can use to do just that.
The First Promise: I Promise to Be Present. Simply put, when you are being present, you are in the moment. You are not obsessing about the past or worrying about the future, or mentally going over your to do list. You are right here, right now. Being present is cultivated by refining your capacity to pay attention, intentionally, in the present moment, and then sustaining that attention over time as best you can. In the process, you become more in touch with your life as it is unfolding.
The Second Promise: I Promise to Be Kind. To be kind is to be good, be friendly, to be gentle and humane, having or showing a generous sympathetic, considerate attitude towards others. It may not feel comfortable to tell someone they have broccoli in their teeth, but it’s certainly considerate and kind. The Sufi recommend that we speak only after asking ourselves three questions. Is what I am about to say is true? Is it necessary? Is it kind? Here’s a Quote by Zohar: “That which you see and hear, you cannot help, but that which you say depends on you alone.”
The Third Promise: I promise to be Grateful. Much has been written about gratitude. Studies have shown that gratitude is good for us. People who describe themselves as feeling grateful to others tend to have higher vitality and more optimism, suffer less stress and experience less depression than the population as a whole. Gratitude helps us recognize that everything that has happened in our life has brought us to now. Gratitude also keeps us firmly focused on the good in our lives. It’s hard to be sad or resentful when you are focused on seeing the good in everyday situations.
The Fourth Promise is my favorite: I Promise to Lighten Up. When you “Lighten Up” you are willing to take yourself a little less seriously, to bring more joy and less angst to what you do and how you relate to others. I believe we need to recognize that our life is a Journey, a series of lessons and experiences that eventually lead us to be fully authentic and self-aware. Our mistakes become opportunities for growth, for personal inquiry, not one more means by which we beat ourselves up. When you lighten up on yourself you naturally lighten up on others.
Keeping these four promises lays the foundation for a more joyful, balanced life.
