Human Practices that Connect Us III

7. Peace/serenity/acceptance. These ideas relate closely to number 4 above. The Christian bible offers the “serenity prayer” as a way to find peace by focusing on the things you might change in your life. How many among us are too often engaged in meddling where we don’t belong or in trying to change other people? In recovery circles that call that “working on the wrong side of the street.” Do you know anyone who got married and believed they could change their spouses? Odds are they are not married today.

Human Practices that Connect Us II

4. Surrender/acceptance/embracing. Buddhists insightfully describe suffering as seeing how things are and wishing they were different. More time spent in surrendering and accepting things exactly how they are is exactly the path to ending suffering. That does not mean that we stop working for meaningful change. We suffer less along the way, and are better able to embrace fully what is. We end up being more clear-headed in the process.