Things I care about but don't have control over. A painful category. This category is comprised of two sub-categories: good items and bad items. This philosophy addresses the bad only, how to deal with winning a lottery is not addressed. All items that occurred in the past are either category 3 or 4. Category 3 items which occur in the future are allowed time/energy only in the form of preparation. Worrying about these items is prohibited. When life is difficult/painful deal with it correctly and move on, simply because there is no better option. Dwelling on items you have no control over is prohibited; you must let go. When I was facing the death of a parent from disease, I was dealing with a category 3 item. Thankfully I had some time to prepare for the inevitable. We had a good relationship (1) and we spent quality time together (1) long before the disease occurred. My emotions ran their course, and the entire time I reminded myself "I have no control over the situation, I must accept it then move on." I probably repeated that sentence in my mind over 300 times. Because my health and happiness (1) is important, I made the time to read and talk to others about how to handle the situation (1). I identified feelings of regrets (3) as they surfaced, and was grateful to already know they're expected which made letting go of them (1) easier. NEXT-> |