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Second Chance to Live

Empowering the Individual, Not the Brain Injury

Living Life when Facing Walls

September 8, 2012 By Second Chance to Live

Hello and welcome back to Second Chance to Live my friends. I am always happy to have you around my table. As I shared in one of my most recent articles, I have been sick for about 10 days. In my experience, I have found that when I am not feeling well I am more susceptible to bleak and stinking thinking.

During the past 10 days I have struggled with such bleak and stinking thinking. In my thinking I felt as though I had come up against a wall that I could not see beyond my friend. Yesterday, I called a friend and she encouraged me to write about the struggle that I found myself facing because of the wall.

As I thought about what she encouraged me to do, I remembered an article that I wrote almost 5 1/2 years ago. As I re-read my article, I found myself being encouraged. My hope is that you will also be encouraged as you read my article — Living my Destiny though Walls — when you are faced with a wall (s) as you live your life.

Living my Destiny though Walls

Posted by Second Chance to Live on September 13, 2007

Hi, and welcome back to Second Chance to Live, my friend. Sometimes life does not appear to be evolving in the direction of our dreams. We may find ourselves up against one wall after another wall regardless of our efforts to avoid the wall. During my lifetime, I have attempted to deal with each wall in a different way. I have spent time denying that the wall existed, I have attempted to push the wall over, climb over the wall, dig under the wall or just sit and wonder why a wall existed. In my effort to resolve my relationship with each wall, I experienced a wide range of emotions such as sadness, anger, frustration, betrayal, and depression. For many years I was not able to value or appreciate these proverbial walls.

Recently, I became aware of another one of these walls. Initially I spent some time being sad and then angry at the wall. After I accepted that the wall was not going away I determined to take some action. I sought to understand the nature and the validity of the wall. I then spoke with several trusted friends in order to process my sadness. Because I have a limited understanding of the wall, I set out to find suitable resources to facilitate my process with the wall. Through the kindness of some professional friends I was able to begin the process of determining how to proceed with my awareness and acceptance of the wall. Although I was initially unable to appreciate the value of the wall, I now recognize the importance of the wall. The wall in essence has kept me from going off a cliff.

My experience with my newest wall has reminded me of several realities. I am not a victim of my circumstances. Walls are merely guides on my journey, to direct my process. Walls are not an unjust nemesis provided to thwart my efforts to achieve my destiny. Walls are merely signs along the road of my life that give me the option to stop, or to turn to right or turn to left at the wall. I have discovered that I can trust the process, a loving God and myself in the decision to stop, to turn right or left when I meet a wall. Because I am now able to see in shades of gray, rather than in only black and white I have determined to learn from my decisions. As an empowered being I am able to live life on life’s terms because I know that more will be revealed.

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Filed Under: Building Self-Esteem after Brain Injury, Fullfining Dreams after Brain Injury

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