As we begin,
Take a moment to find your center.
Move from the outward rush to the inner stillness.
Let your breath guide you in.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Welcome to a hit of hope.
Do you ever have those times in life when you are working at or even beyond capacity?
When you are stretched thin,
When every lick of energy you have is required.
Maybe you are up against a deadline.
Maybe you are doing your damnedest to make ends meet.
Maybe life keeps piling on and you have to just keep going.
Inhale.
Exhale.
I'm in one of those spots right now,
Which is why I've been listening to the Rocky IV soundtrack when I work out.
I need as much motivation as I can get to make it through my demanding days.
As I was listening to the soundtrack this time,
I thought about how clearly the Russians were made to be an enemy in my childhood.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Rarely are our enemies so well defined.
What's more,
Our enemies are less likely to live halfway across the world and more likely to live near or even in us.
And it's that last idea of the enemies within that I want us to consider.
The very first entry in the Oxford English Dictionary for Enemy is one that cherishes hatred.
How often do we cherish the hatred toward ourselves?
That's a really unsettling question.
Our first impulse might be to say,
No,
We never do that.
But stop for a second.
Think about it.
How often do we feed the enemies inside the best part of the feast?
Giving the good and the kind inside only scraps.
Inhale.
Exhale.
How often are we nobody's enemy,
But our own?
Attacking our tender self,
Leaving it wounded and in pain.
What if we stop enemying ourselves,
Continually cherishing what is wrong?
What if we put down our weapons?
For of course,
We know the best way to hurt ourselves.
Inhale.
Exhale.
What if we change our minds?
Turning away from the battlefield and turning toward a wide open field inside.
One full of sun and light,
Flower and flight.
Be on your own side.
You are worthy.
Feed the good.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Live light.
