Today’s post is inspired by Calm’s daily meditation from yesterday (*Side note, if you don’t already meditate download the Calm app… like now. I’ve tried to meditate in bits and spurts for years and finally I have a program that I can stick with. And I think you can download it for free for a week so really, there isn’t a reason NOT to try it). (**Another Side note, I am not sponsored by Calm although I wish I was. If you know anyone that works there please tell them I’m available for cheap). Okay, so back to my meditation. The daily meditation yesterday was focused on accepting what you cannot change (hmmmm, sound familiar??) and they shared a story that highlights the concept of being flexible to your circumstances.

As the story goes, early one morning a traveler was walking down a long road and came across a shepherd tending to his flock. The traveler asked the shepherd “What kind of weather are we going to have today?” The shepherd answered, “The kind of weather I like.” The traveler asked, “But how do you know it will be the kind of weather you like?” The shepherd answered, “Having found out that I cannot always get what I like, I’ve learned to always like what I get. So I am quite sure we will have the kind of weather I like.”

In recovery we learn about relinquishing control and accepting what we cannot change. I find these words comforting especially right now. Our lives are completely upended. The year 2020 has become synonymous with dumpster fires. This isn’t what we envisioned. This is not part of the plan. I’m not saying that, like the shepherd, we have to like what is happening. However, we do need to accept that the only thing we can control is how we react to the situation.

So we can choose to react by pouting and complaining about how it isn’t fair - how it’s all the Republicans or the Democrats fault. Or we can practice non-resistance and focus on what we can control. Channeling our energy into appreciating the millions of tiny miracles that happen every day. And accepting that right now, it’s like this but it will not be like this forever.