The Power of Perspective

After a week of fretting, worrying and getting anxious over the "what if's" and "why me's"... a calm meeting and a bit of distance has truly set forth to alleviate my concerns over life, school and work. My personal situation is not the end of the world... I am just going through the motions of dealing with deployment and pregnancy (which of course is doing nothing to smooth my emotions). Graduation plans seem to be back in order for next May, despite what seemed like a wall (G-d bless graduate advisors; their power to see the light at the end of the tunnel is truly life saving). And I may still be employed next year, pending a budget approval. This perspective has been exactly what I needed -- Job is not my new name.

The Yoga Sutras teach us that the entire world is our own projection, and that things outside neither bind nor liberate us; only our attitudes toward them does that. For example, think about the belief that "life is hard." If you operate from this assumption, everything you do will seem like a struggle. You look for challenges in every situation, potentially creating your own roadblocks. Instead, if you turn that around to "I am meant to succeed," then you open your mind to new ideas. As yoga guru Sri Swami Satchidananda said, "There's nothing wrong with the world. You can make it heaven or hell according to your approach."

The ability to reframe a situation is an important skill that can transform your life and our world. Today, I have taken the time to clear my lenses so that I can view life from a higher perspective. I am what I make myself out to be in the type of world I choose to see.