Serenity

I realize not all of you may be religious, but this just made sense to me and I started writing...

For as long as I can remember, I've encountered setbacks and instances where I am unable to achieve what I set out to do or attempt to change those things that prevent me to do so. And be it odd that I find comfort in something that originated from AA meetings, it makes so much sense.

God grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace.

Since I heard the Serenity Prayer years ago, I’ve come back to it time and time again when I don’t know where to go, how to handle myself in situations, or just need a change of pace. I even ended up using it as the base for a speech I gave a few years back to a youth group and I ended up looking back at that the other night just to really see how I went about myself 3 years ago. And while I was reading it, so many things just began to hit me.

• Everyday I see hundreds of people across campus, constantly relying on one another to achieve certain goals, meet deadlines or just carry out their days. I’ve also seen what happens when someone fails in doing so and the other people involved just become lost. Truth is, no matter whom we are or what we do, if we can’t hold any sense of being independent from one another or feeling like we are unable to achieve anything by ourselves, we aren’t going to get very far. Especially being in college and with so much going on around me, my time here is all about independency. I can never rely on just one person, one friend or one professor; I am going to encounter things that I will have to go through myself such as finishing a term paper, creating a proper day-to-day schedule to keep myself on track, or just make decisions that could impact me for the rest of my life. Only God knows how many decisions I’ve already had to make on my own, but with every decision came a dwelling point which brings me to my next point…

• Dwelling on the past and taking the steps to move past it is easy for some and tough for others. The acceptance that it takes to take in what goes on around you, the courage to realize it and the strength to move on go hand in hand, day after day. People are always looking for something constant, but things that seem still are still changing whether we would like to face that fact or not, and it’s something we’ll face every day. It’s where the drama originates; it’s where people become frustrated with each other, where life takes its hardest hardships. For years I have admired the ability of some people to just move on past no matter what happens to them in their lifetime without even thinking twice about how personal something may be, but it also makes me wonder how much different things could be if we all took that effect.

Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.
1 Corinthians 16:13

Last year, I met a woman who lost her family in the 9/11 attacks. In speaking with her, she said not a day goes by where she feels like there was something that she could have done to change what happened that day, but that all in all, what happened has happened and she must move on no matter what the circumstances. And even hearing the tone of her voice to the words she was saying, and even only knowing this woman for a few seconds just made me think about it…a woman had just lost her husband of 25 years and her twin daughters who had just graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pittsburgh, not to mention this was mostly the last family she had left and they were taken away from her. All of this was something I know I would have such a difficult time trying to overcome and probably to this day still wouldn’t be able to overcome. Tragedies of all kinds take strength, a calm mind and so much faith just to get by day in and day out.

“Rise up; this matter is in your hands. We will support you, so take courage and do it."
Ezra 10:4

And to think that if someone like this woman was able to move past such a tough moment in her life, anyone should be able to say, “Hey…tomorrow is a brand new day, I need to live it one day at a time, enjoy one moment at a time and appreciate every possible second that I'm given, because no matter what may go wrong, there is the most simple of silver linings to everything.”

• I’ve never been able to understand wisdom, where it comes from, or if I’ll ever have any myself. I’ve made more than my share of foolish decisions, many which have hindered me from creating happiness for myself and for everyone around me without thinking things through or even asking for advice. And I couldn’t even begin to fathom how extremely wrong it is to just jump into something headfirst without thinking things through. I’ve been guilty of doing so time and time again, yet the more it happens, the more I learn. I may be completely selfish in doing so, but in so many instances I’ve realized the difference between what I can control and what I can’t. Which in terms, ends up bringing me right back to the beginning of the prayer.

• I’ve always been one to over-elaborate things I may encounter, but that is who I am and I can’t be disappointed with the fact that that is how things are. Yet over the past couple months, I have realized I’ve only been a mere shell of what I used to be. I have pushed people away, I have hurt those that I care about, I’ve focused on things that I shouldn’t be focused on, just not been the person I should be and thanks to that…lost close friends and people I care about.

But like I said, every time I feel lost or not myself, I find myself coming back to this prayer. It speaks for so many instances in life, especially lately and has ultimately made me realize so much: Take things a day at a time, realize and take in what happens around you no matter the smallest thing, never smother the things you love, respect anyone you come in contact with, enjoy every minute of life, and just accept the inevitable…it may be the last thing in the world you want, but sometimes you just have to learn to accept it as a pathway to peace.

I encourage everyone to go to this prayer any time things get tough. It has gotten me through a lot and helped me get back on track with life. It states one of life’s realizations in its greatest sense and to me… there is no better way to put it.