Day 1649 - Agreement Two

This is a continuation of yesterday's blog post on The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz.
www.amazon.com/Four-Agre
ements-Practical-Personal-
Freedom/dp/1878424319

Today's blog regards Agreement Two: "Don't Take Anything Personally"

This agreement is a perfect companion to the first agreement to be impeccable with your words. When other people use their word in a harmful or unkind manner, we shouldn't take their words to heart. When we internalize them, then they fester and rot and create lasting damage.

I think of the little girl in the story I shared yesterday. If she hadn't taken her mother's words seriously or personally, she may have been able to avoid feeling so terrible about her voice. She was too young to learn this important lesson.

On one of my favorite competition TV shows a few seasons back, one of the contestants was pretty harshly criticized by the other competitors during a couple of the episodes. The contestant would utter a mantra: "Water off a duck's back, water off a duck's back" as a shield against the criticism. It helped her to remain focused, and she ultimately won that season on the show because she didn't let those harsh words get to her.

I've learned (the hard way) that I can't react when someone says something against me. This is especially true because, as a gay man, I've encountered my share of bullies and meanies over the past 50+ years. If someone says an unkind word to me, it's about them.


DON'T TAKE ANYTHING PERSONALLY.
Nothing others do is because of you.
What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream.
When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.

Agreement One: www.sparkpeople.com/mypa
ge_public_journal_individu
al.asp?blog_id=6595372