Please Do Not “Should” All Over Yourself

Please do not “should” all over yourself…

This phrase was made famous by Albert Ellis, who expounded upon this premise of holding oneself to an impossible standard of fretting over the past; after all, who can change the past? Of course we can learn from the past, but one must ask oneself, “WHAT am I learning from the past?” Am I learning that I cannot rely on anyone but myself? Am I learning that no matter what I do, I will never be good enough? Am I learning that those mistakes I made mark me for the rest of my life? This “learning” is false, restrictive, and defeating—and if it does no good, and in fact, is destructive, WHY do we do it?

Living in the present, capturing moments to own, share, and embody is a CHOICE! Each and every human being has the power of choice—EVERY human, EVERY moment, EVERY circumstance. In that split second when we are present with our amazing power of choice, we can say YES to life and NO to “should”; we can own our power, and take responsibility for our lives. YES WE CAN! Let NO one convince you otherwise! Do NOT give your power away when fear or frustration or lies come pounding on your life’s door. And if this truth makes you uncomfortable, ask yourself what is happening inside and take a compassionate look at those past events, or words, or circumstances, or deep wounds that may just be asking for you to find the gold in the ruins.

It’s your choice.