Session 16: A Lesson in Grace
A common theme of my Therapy Thursday sessions was “GRACE“. The word came up only occasionally, but it was frequently alluded to.
After hearing it a few times in my sessions with Ken, it became a word that kept showing up in my life… How much more clear could the message have been for me?
PRACTICE GRACE.
DEMONSTRATE GRACE.
SHOW GRACE.
I would like to have said SHOW MORE GRACE, but the harsh reality is that grace was not something that I had practiced very much in my life.
My Therapy Thursday sessions made it clear that my critical nature was a poison that kept me from connecting in a positive way with people I loved. Ken never came out and said that directly, of course- part of therapy is about discovering these things for ourselves.
And its not like this fact was unknown to me… after all, when I started therapy, I said that one of the issues I wanted to address was whether my expectations were too high (read: unrealistic).
GRACE
According to Merriam-Webster.com, Grace is “unmerited divine assistance given to humans for their regeneration or sanctification”. I also liked this alternative definition: “disposition to or an act or instance of kindness, courtesy, or clemency”
Dictionary.com has it defined (in this context) as “favor or goodwill”
Ken defined it as “unmerited favor”
I was encouraged to practice GRACE, and since I didn’t really know what that looked like or how to do it very well, Ken gave me these tools/concepts to add to my personal growth toolbelt.
- Be kind in what I say and how I say it.
- Express gratitude whenever possible.
- Be forgiving.
- Ask for forgiveness when I err.
- Care about others & help when I am able.
- Remain calm and composed when others are rude.
“Treat people better than they deserve to be treated.”
These are simple principles of decency, yet I can think of several instances when this is NOT the way I behave.
However, I am work in progress, so I will keep striving to live this way. As we all should.
