Ownership

To own something is to be in a state of belonging to oneself.

Most of us think of this in reference to material objects. We own our clothes, our furniture, our pictures, etc. But how many of us think of this word in terms of our lives?

Do you truly own your life? What does that even mean?

For one thing, it means taking responsibility for our actions and the consequences that come with them. We can only own our lives when we can admit that they belongs to us. Each day we wake and go about our routines and everything we do becomes a part of who we are. When we acknowledge our actions we take ownership of them. When something goes wrong in our lives we do not point our finger at an external force and blame it, we look inside and see what choices we made to lead us there.

It means living with the intention of being a conscious creator of our existence. Each day we make the effort to recognize the choices we have in front of us and make decisions based on being a positive force in our own life and in the lives of those around us. We choose to engage in life, not simply let it slip by us.

Only through ownership of our lives can we grow, for what can you learn if you had nothing to do with your circumstances. How can you change anything if it is out of your control. Look at the situations where you felt like the victim and see what you might have done to change those circumstances.

When we truly take ownership of our lives, we find a strength in them that we didn't realize was there. Taking ownership of your life is very empowering. You will find yourself standing taller and speaking louder.

A year in review

Today is the last day of 2006.

New Year's Eve is a time of reflection as well as forward vision. We take the time to look at what we have accomplished in the past year and begin to plan for what we want to accomplish in the next.

It has been many months since I posted anything. I came upon a spiritual grand canyon and needed to find my way around it. I believe that there are many times in our lives where we find ourselves staring into a cavernous void of uncertainty and it is in these times that we reexamine our system of beliefs.

I once saw these times of questioning as a lack of faith or a flaw in character, but I now have come to the understanding that they are a part of the process. These times give us the opportunity to unpack our baggage and see what we are carrying. We can stop and study those pieces of thought that trouble us and decide to accept them, change them or dump them in the trash and move on.

Sometimes these are momentary pit stops, when a specific belief is challenged and analyzed; other times these questionings become a longer voyage of their own. Either way, when we continue with the next steps in our journey we do so with a renewed sense of purpose and clarity of thought.

This is where I now find myself. Moving forward once again.