The Serenity Prayer
God grant me:
The Serenity, to accept the things I cannot change.
The Courage, to change the things I can.
And the Wisdom, to know the difference.
Thy will, not mine, be done.
Amen
This is not just a prayer. It is the best philosophy I have ever heard on how to live life. Whatever the relationships, be it love, friendships, finances, work, or any other aspect of life, those three lines can be applied.
Here is briefly what those three lines tell me.
The Serenity, to accept the things I cannot change.
This is difficult to do because, each of us wants to be in total control of every aspect of our life. Many let the drama of everyday life get to them and control their emotions when they have no control over the drama itself. You cannot change the facts. You cannot change other people. Because of this lack of power and control, you must learn to accept it and concentrate on what you do control.
The Courage, to change the things I can.
It is not easy to make these changes because, more often than not, it means changing ourselves. This cannot be done overnight. It takes time and we must have the will power to stick it out. If you have ever been addicted to cigarettes, alcohol, or drugs, you can attest to this. These may be addictions but they are based on choices that we all must make. We all like to think that we are right and others have the problem in the relationship. Not true. Maybe one change on our part can make all the difference. The change can be something as simple as changing attire, hairstyle, etc. to something as serious as terminating the relationship entirely for the benefit of all concerned.
And the Wisdom, to know the difference.
This is the biggie. Thinking about it and weighing the pros and cons logically. To do this we often have to ignore our own partialities and emotions. Perhaps the most difficult of all things to do, yet we do it hundreds of times everyday with less important decisions, so we are capable of it.
If more people would live by this kind of philosophy, maybe there would be less hate and drama. I think these words can be applied to all aspects of life.
