I had an interesting experience this week attending a meeting where a hockey tournament was going on for what looked like 11-year-old boys. The thing that stood out to this non-hockey person was that these boys were carrying, on their backs, the most humungous hockey bags. And while they clearly took pride in being able to independently shoulder these behemoth bags, they were clearly bent with the weight as they trudged along. Inside the meeting the speaker was discussing the health problems that tend to build up if we don’t let things go. That when we hold on to hurts or grudges or pains caused by others for sometimes years that this is like drinking poison and will weigh us down. What an exceptional convergence of experiences, seeing the weighed down players, hulking through with their bags three times their own body weight while at the same time talking about the emotional baggage we can carry when we don’t let go of what might not have ever been ours to hold. The speaker in the room reminded all of us that we cannot begin to control the actions of others, that our only control is what we do ourselves in our hula hoop circle of self-regulation. When we are disappointed or hurt, we were urged to reflect- are we trying to buy bread at the hardware store? Were we expecting wisdom, or love or behaviour from another person that they simply are not able to offer to us or to themselves. So in essence we are carrying that huge hockey bag when really all this time, we never should have taken it on, there is great wisdom in knowing that the person inflicting pain, can’t hurt us, unless we in fact take the load.
UltimateInclusion.com 