You are free to be responsible for your life right now,
but do you want to be?

Are you ready to give up your attachment
to your story?

The problems you perceive in your life are projections
of the internal conflict: “I want but I cannot have.”

If you would allow yourself to have what you want,
or if you would stop wanting it,
this conflict would cease.

Your story of “seek but do not find” would be over.

Be honest with yourself.
Are you willing to give up the drama?
Or has your pain, your scarcity, your need to fix or be fixed
become part of your personality?

Has your story become your identity?

If not, let the past dissolve right here, right now.
Be totally responsible for what you choose.
There are no more excuses.

After reading this poem by Paul Ferrini, I see clearly that the day I chose to give up my story, my drama, and to trust in my goodness (not the same as perfection!) was the day my life of transformation and enlightenment began. I realized I could not do both: grow and transform, become conscious and aware, and believe in my story of shame and not-enoughness at the same time. It was time to let go and to allow myself to live in a state of not knowing, confusion, and doubt as long as it took for me to triumph.

I learned that my story is important – just as everyone’s is. The attachment to my story was what I was being invited to leave behind. I was also invited to leave behind any excuses I had been making for not living in my wholeness, in my goodness. Underneath my belief that I was inadequate, I found a strong self, a passionate self: someone who cares deeply for humanity and who dedicates each day to promoting peace and compassion in our world.

What is your story? Are you able to have your history and memory, yet not be attached to anything that tells you shame and inadequacy is what you deserve? Dig deep…see what you find. And please, make no excuses: be bold and courageous, loving and forgiving in the process. Perhaps if we all take just this step, our world will transform into a world of purpose, compassion, and peace.

Notes: “Attachment to your Story” from Everyday Wisdom by Paul Ferrini reprinted with permission.