My Values & Principles

 

My mission is: "To create a loving world by growing the love for myself, others and my infinite environment".

 

It is only recently that I have started to look at my values and principles in more depth. There I was going through life having my ups and my downs but not really noticing what triggered them. There are things I've done I am not proud of and there are things I've done that I am. There are times when I feel good about who and what I am and there are times when I feel not so good. I tend to feel at deep peace with my "Self", even if emotionally I am having a tough time, when I live by the following:

 

Authenticity - is the degree to which I am true to my own personality, spirit, or character, despite social or cultural pressures.

 

Honesty - means simply stating facts and views as best I truly believe them to be. It includes both honesty to others, and to myself and about my own motives and inner reality.

 

Integrity - is the basing of my actions on an internally consistent framework of principles. Depth of principles and adherence of each level to the next are key determining factors. I have integrity when everything I do and believe is based on the same core set of values. While those values may change, it is their consistency with each other and with my actions that determine my integrity. Now, being a human being I have occasional slips from grace and when I do I avoid judging, I just notice.

 

Curiosity - is an emotion that causes natural inquisitive behaviour such as exploration, investigation, and learning. It is something that keeps me bright and alive and open minded and forgiving.

 

Unconditional Love - is loving myself regardless of external conditions and showing love towards someone regardless of his or her actions or beliefs. This includes not denying myself/my feelings in favour of others. It is two souls, destined to help one another. Once I am able to love my "Self" without condition then I will be able to love others without condition. Even after all the work I have done on my "self" I can still catch myself being unkind to my "self" - it's an ongoing journey!

 

A favourite piece of work is The Invitation by Oriah Mountain Dreamer. I share it at many gatherings I go to. I can relate so strongly to different parts of it through the different times of my own journey. I'd like to share it with you:

The Invitation

It doesnt interest me what you do for a living. I want to know what you ache for and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart’s longing.

It doesn’t interest me how old you are. I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love for your dream for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn’t interest me what planets are squaring your moon... I want to know if you have touched the centre of your own sorrow if you have been opened by life’s betrayals or have become shrivelled and closed from fear of further pain.

I want to know if you can sit with pain mine or your own without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.

I want to know if you can be with joy mine or your own if you can dance with wildness and let the ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful be realistic remember the limitations of being human.

It doesn’t interest me if the story you are telling me is t rue. I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself. If you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul. If you can be faithless and therefore trustworthy.

I want to know if you can see Beauty even when it is not pretty every day. And if you can source your own life from its presence. I want to know if you can live with failure yours and mine and still stand at the edge of the lake and shout to the silver of the full moon, “Yes.”

It doesn’t interest me to know where you live or how much money you have. I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair weary and bruised to the bone and do what needs to be done to feed the children.

It doesn’t interest me who you know or how you came to be here. I want to know if you will stand in the centre of the fire with me and not shrink back.

It doesn’t interest me where or what or with whom you have studied. I want to know what sustains you from the inside when all else falls away. I want to know if you can be alone with yourself and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.

 All this good stuff is an intention and an aspiration of mine.