Well, I have certainly learned some huge life lessons here. Thoreau said, “I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately.” I understand that now. Living deliberately puts you in deep touch with your soul and the universe.
Now, I certainly don't live exactly like Thoreau did, but since practically everything I do has to be done without the benefit of electricity or gas and with very little money, it all has to be done with great deliberation. Then getting it done gives me a sense of accomplishment like nothing I've ever had before.
Another lesson has been about forgiveness. "Forgiveness is the exercise of compassion. It is both a process and an attitude," claims Joan Borysenko, Ph.D., author of Guilt is the Teacher, Love is the Lesson. Borysenko suggests that the process toward forgiveness is to take personal responsibility for your role in a particular outcome. Accept the past as part of a learning experience. We all have weaknesses. The way we grow is to learn from our mistakes. Look for help from whatever source you respect and then share what you've learned with others. Compassion is contagious.
Forgiveness is not a lack of responsibility or action. It does not mean that we are to be passive and perpetual victims. To the contrary. Forgiveness requires great courage, faith, and action.
Holding on to resentment is like drinking poison, and hoping the other person dies. It is toxic both physically and mentally. This is a medical fact as well. Many studies have been done on what resentment (or unforgiveness) does to our bodies, including raising one’s blood pressure. Let it go. Besides, if you develop more empathy and more compassion...that will drive them crazy!! Allow yourself to give it up to Karma.
In spite of all I have had to endure here, I know I am really am fortunate compared to others I've read about who have ended up stranded in a different country because of a psychopath. I have read some true horror stories. I know what it's like to live with the fear that you could lose everything you own at any given minute. I now have a real appreciation of what it feels like to be an illegal alien, even though I'm just an American, in Canada.
