One of my favorite proverbs, “this too shall pass” has become like a mantra for me over the past few months. Whenever I’m going through something that feels uncomfortable, particularly change or transition, I think to myself that this moment is only a moment, and whatever I’m feeling now about a specific situation, person, or thing, will eventually pass and be replaced with new emotions, thoughts, and ideas.
I try to remember how temporary all of this is, how clinging to something that doesn’t feel good for me is really not worth my time or energy. It’s actually quite comical to look back at all the times I’ve allowed my mind to run free thinking of something that only made me feel worse about myself. To continually pick and pick at an open wound, to linger around analyzing elements of my life until I felt I finally got my head wrapped around the truth of a situation.
It can really become a masochistic habit, one that as I mentioned before, is not worth any time or energy. I think to myself now, how much better would it be to spend my time thinking about things that make me feel good, motivated, happy, and confident? Why do I allow myself to think otherwise?
Ernest Hemingway said, “There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.”
This life is set up so that we can constantly grow, and a part of that process is having different experiences and people walk in and out of our lives. I’ve found that it’s often the hurtful or so called “bad” experiences that have been my greatest teachers.
How else do we know what we need to work on in ourselves if it doesn’t come up? How else do we surpass our formal selves to move onto the better versions of us, if we don’t go through trying times, and thus are forced to pick ourselves up and find a way to move forward?
We can be the best versions of ourselves any time and any day we want; when we’re judgmental, angry, irritated, or easily annoyed, we’re out of alignment with our natural state of being. It’s the times where we feel light and content, happy and selfless, that we are in tune with the natural flow of life and our higher selves.
Remembering the old proverb, “this too shall pass” not only reminds us of the temporality of all things, but is also helpful when trying to work through a hard time or negative thinking pattern.
If we always remind ourselves of how important it is to eagerly and actively participate in being the best versions of ourselves that we can be, then we are creating a life that will be more fulfilling and uplifting, while also benefiting others who watch as they’re in the presence of someone who illuminates with strong character, dignity, and greatness.
"There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that's your own self." -Aldous Huxley
