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"I begin then, with my list of truisms, every one of which, I
know, with certainty, to be true."
~ G.E. Moore

Poetic Acceptance is more than just a vaguely emo-teen-ish cutesy title to me - it really is a philosophical premise, a personal truism. There are times when you either accept, change, or go crazy. I suppose it's a bit reminiscent of the serenity prayer. The secret is in the knowing whether to accept a situation or to try to change it. Sometimes, reality in and of itself makes that decision for you - death, for example, cannot be changed, it just is, and must be accepted. (Unless your religious/spiritual beliefs lend to the assumption that death is not final, such as in the case of reincarnation. But speaking in a practical sense, someone else's death, or more precisely, their absence from our lives due to that death, is an unalterable truth.)

That finality and inarguability is probably the hardest part of death to come to grips with, the most difficult to accept, and yet, isn't it easier to not have to make the decision? There is no choice, you simply do what you must. When there is a choice to be made, that decision making process is by far more complicated.

Is a particular situation changeable? With how much effort? Is the effort worth the result? Can you do it alone, or will you need help?

I find that if I can change it on my own, I tend to lean toward toward attempting that change, but if I must rely on someone else, I will normally opt to accept. This isn't laziness or lack of motivation - it is a form of acceptance in itself. I accept that I cannot cause someone else to implement a change on my behalf; they must see that change in a way that benefits them, and in a way that leads them to the willingness to put forth the necessary effort. If they don't, they most likely won't bother.

Unfortunately, it isn't that cut and dried, thanks to the very human emotion we call hope. I hope too much. . . Isn't hope supposed to be a positive emotion?! For me, I wait and hope for far too long that some other individual will see the personal benefit of the change I desire. They rarely do, and I land smack dab in the middle of choice number three... Going crazy trying to change something that I can't, wasting precious time that should be spent coming to the acceptance.

Perhaps I'm learning how close "acceptance" sometimes is to "resignation."


Tagged: Miscellaneous, Ramblings, Random Thoughts