THERE WILL BE PEACE IN THE VALLEY

The tricky part about getting to know oneself, really know oneself, is that it can't be done without letting others know you, too...and by others, I mean ALL others...not just  friends. One of the side benefits of friendship is you get to know, gut-bucket know, another...and love them anyhow. Talk about the rough road to acceptance.

But letting so-so acquaintances (not yet enemies, but heading in that direction), jerks and passing strangers who stay awhile really know you...gives new meaning to the word "letting." There's no letting about it if you're serious about getting to know yourself. The doors get opened, if you're doing it right, and the world, as and if s/he chooses, walks in, sits down, sees, says, judges, accepts, rejects, stays, goes...that's all wrapped up  in the process of getting to know oneself.

I consider myself a loner...with a boatload of blessings I call friends. And it's taken seriously hard work for those friends to break down my barriers...and simple willingness on my part to let them. And that goes both ways, I'm here to say.

As for the so-called (by me) jerks...it is a fact that a couple of my dearest friends started out in my life labeled (by me) as jerks. I'm convinced jerks can see me more clearly, faster, than a friend...mainly because a friend's job is to love me...they accept and justify and support me, and I them. A jerk, an enemy, starts out seeing me very clearly, but then likely lets her view get clouded by personal judgments, prejudices...self. I know this is true of me

It was a purely gold life lesson when I learned it is possible to turn a couple of jerks into dear friends...by simply choosing to. I made a conscious decision to look from another angle at one jerk I knew in grade school who then became a good friend in high school (she lived next door to the boy I had a crush on...there's usually a carrot in there to begin with) and she's been a dear friend ever since.

That's one way wars can be avoided...simply looking at the situation from another angle...finding some point to agree on, giving up a point or two of my own...voila...agreement.

There will be peace in the valley one day.

Thank You.