Learning to Love. Decision

L´earning to  Love

Gloria Ornelas Hall

Lesson 11: Decision

Illusions are time-out from reality. We need them as breathers; time for our shadows to catch up with us.

But to live deluded is to be a fool. Wrong-doing will do it. When we do wrong we lie to ourselves to self-justify. If we do it enough times, we end up ‘be-living’ the stories we tell ourselves and others.

To do Right is to live in Truth. Sages of old used to say it was the state of Grace that allowed us to receive ‘graciously’, ‘gratefully’. From Truth comes ‘virtue’ (lat: vir- strength, stamina). Virtue will give us the strength we need to confront lies and deception.

But how do we do Right? It just takes a decision. Willful decision-making comes from conscious awareness between Right and Wrong, between constructive and destructive choices.

Freud said man had two internal life forces: one pulling towards life- ‘Eros’; and one pulling towards death- ‘Tanatos’. It is man’s God-given right to have free will to choose.  

We may not be able to change reality, but through choice, we can be True to ourselves. We choose what we feel, what we think, what we desire, what we believe, what attitudes we take and what we do EVERYTIME WE HAVE A CONFLICT. The word ‘conflict’ comes from the latin: friccio-friction. It is the confrontation, rubbing between that which our Selves desire and Reality, as it is. Stress is the energy formed from this resistance. In itself, it is neither wrong nor right. This stress, will give us the energy needed for a response. We decide if right or wrong.

Unfortunately, it is experience that teaches us that. By teaching our children the impact of their choices we may avoid them, unnecessary pain.