Today's Affirmation

 "Today I will take responsibility only for myself and let others be responsible for themselves."

 

 

If we really want to make personal and spiritual progress, then we need to begin to separate the responsibilities that really belong to us from those responsibilities that we take on that really don't belong to us.

 

Because we are responsible people, we take on more responsibility than we need to.  We take on responsibility for everyone in our lives. 

 

Yes, in the case of children, small children, as parents we need to be responsible for them, but there comes a time in each child's life, in our lives, when our responsibility should diminish in order to let the child take responsibility for himself.  As the child matures, we should allow him more and more age-appropriate responsibility,  until, as a young adult, the child can take on full responsibility for himself.

 

But our children are not the only ones we take responsibility from.  We take on responsibility for our husbands, wives, sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers, friends, bosses, colleagues, neighbors, students.....You name it, some of us feel responsible for EVERYBODY in our lives.

 

It is not up to us, it is not our responsibility to be responsible for everybody in our lives.  We only need to be responsible for ourselves. 

 

When we take on responsibility for everybody else, we take on stress and anxiety and worry.  Then, when things go awry, we look at ourselves and say, "Where did I go wrong?  What didn't I do that I should have done?"

 

Well, here it is, folks......what we should have done was to allow the person to be responsible for himself.  We only need to look to ourselves and govern ourselves.  Others must do the same-take on full responsibility for their own action and behavior. 

 

We are NOT the monitors of the world.  When we take responsibility that belongs to others, we deny them the opportunity to learn valuable lessons, make mistakes, and correct their behavior.  In short, we deny them the opportunity to make personal progress and reinforce the idea that others are to blame when things don't turn out.

 

So, begin observing those in your life from whom you take responsibility.  Begin by releasing responsibility for them to them.  Start with small things.  Start by saying, "I love you, but it is not my responsibility to (fill in the blank)."

 

A quick anecdote:  The other day my 21 year old son overslept and said to me, "Mom, why didn't you wake me up?"  My response was, "It is not my responsibility to see to it that you wake up for school.  That is your responsibility."  Now he sets his alarm earlier than he needs to so that he can get up in time."

 

Go with the god of your choice.

In Love and Light,

Robin