Nox Amicus

Every new moon I pick a new topic to reflect on. In January it was self-awareness, February was self-discovery, and March was self-forgiveness. I really had planned on this new moon being about something else… but it’s just not time for that yet. Instead, this cycle will be about self-determination.

There are times in our lives where we act against our own best interests – we do things that inadvertently hurt ourselves or others – but good or bad, we always have a choice. Over the next few weeks I want to try to be more mindful of those cusps and try to lean toward nurturing and fulfillment – not just for myself but for those around me as well.

I’ve been singing this song with the band for a few months now – but I always struggled with the motivation. I don’t want to prevent a partner or someone in my life from changing and growing – I always want them to be their best selves. Coming off of last night’s full moon though – I found something deep in myself that I hadn’t felt in about 7-8 years. Suddenly the lyric “I found a love I had lost” makes perfect sense.

We shouldn’t need to change for one another, nor should we need others to change for us. We are all beautiful and flawed and perfect. If we can meet in that space – and embrace the perfect love and trust with and for one another – that’s where the magic happens.

For the past few months I’ve been working on different areas of self-improvement. First was self-awareness, then self-discovery, and right now I’m in the middle of exercises in self-forgiveness. That can take on many forms, but it begins with understanding one’s need for forgiveness in the first place.

With time to reflect today, I returned to the Buddhist concept of Shenpa and decided I wanted to see what more I could read about it – because that Shenpa, or attachment, seems like it sits at the heart of my being too hard on myself. When I did a search today, I found an article published just this past Friday from Pena Chödrön – a Buddhist voice I respect very much. The timing and synergy suggested it was important to share this. Click here to read “How We Get Hooked and How We Get Unhooked“.