I want to be accepted... no matter what. I don't believe that I am. Why? Because when I look to myself, I see all the ways I don't accept others. So then, how could I be so arrogant as to expect others to accept me. Why then, do I state my desire to be accepted at all? It would seem a self defeating process to try to believe in something out there when it isn't believed inside. That leads to asking the question, "How then do I begin to believe I can accept others and put that acceptance to work so that I may open to others accepting me?" Sounds simple but is it? How we go about accepting the little things are quite a bit easier then the bigger issues that threaten ourselves. Yes, that is what it is that is so much simpler to reject, a threat. It is very difficult to accept the things that threaten us. Abstract ideas like another person's sexual practice beliefs, or recreational drug use, or use of force upon another human being for example. These are things that a pointing finger can't quite point to but threaten us as though they would do us harm. They are ideas put into practice that can be very offensive or threatening to anyone of us. Where do we turn to deal with these kinds of issues? Is it the church? Is the church void of judgment and accepting to all without condition? I think not. In fact, the church has historically proven to be misused exactly in that manner. To exclude those who practice a differing belief then that of which that church professes. A strict line to walk to be worthy of acceptance and be called good. That is not where the answer lies. The church is a word and a community adheres to that word. Not for any other reason but to conform to what that community is familiar with from birth to death. The idea of church is good. The practice of church is often detrimental. Always be wary of framed ideas. They leave little room for anything outside of the box. And believe me, the universe is outside of the box. That is where we need to go to think; Outside the box.

So where then do we look for help in accepting others without condition so that it may be possible for others to accept ourselves? Why not look inwards...towards the self. Inwards is outside the box. Looking within is seeing a space as vast as the universe. Lets look to the 'why' that any threat is a threat. What is about yourself that you can not accept? The threats that are out there can only be seen as a threat if there is a part of self that threat springs from. Threat recognizes threat. If there is an identity you have in mind to create yourself in and there are impulses to act in a way that is against that said identity you will see it in others first and consequently feel threat from them. You will reject them. By rejecting them you reject yourself. If you push them down and kick them, be sure to kick them hard; You are really kicking yourself. At that point, perhaps you deserve a hard kick. That is obviously an attempt to show how ludicrous it is to reject another when it is self that is being rejected. Always be wary of blaming others for what short comings you see in self. If you have impulses that are not who you want to create of yourself, learn why. Discover what lies hidden beneath your awareness and see what births the impulses that trip you. You will discover the mother of these impulses. In discovering this, you will be able to dismiss or integrate these impulses into who you want to be. That is your power.

Every day we create a self with every act and thought that we allow ourselves. Every day we gather input from out there and determine what is acceptable and what isn't. Every day we measure self with the world we see. Our limitations are world-self imposed. Our fear is what stops us from creating the identity that we repress in order to strive for acceptance. That is the catch 22. We repress our self to create an acceptable self from projections of our neighbors expectations and in doing so, we stop trusting our self and inevitably stop trusting our neighbors. Be true to yourself. "Nosce te Ipsum", Know thyself. Search for the self that is beyond the ego's sense of self. Therein lies the 'you' that can be trusted. Find and be friends with the self that isn't measure by others to exist. Avoid identifying with the 'act' of finding self. Many get lost confusing the search for the reason. It is 'you' are looking for and 'you' have been trying to get your attention all of your life. When you find 'you', your acceptance for others will appear as if by magic. Your fears will lose hold of 'you' and the things that once threatened you will be threats no more. Those fears cant touch 'you'. Even death doesn't touch that with is 'you'.

There is one path to follow. One that is at the feet of us all. There are other paths to achieve the same result. I advise you not to be closed to them if they should become evident to you. Do what works to find inner peace and acceptance of self. The acceptance of self is the only gate to acceptance of others. You will see that it is the same garden the gate of acceptance stands in. Self and others stem from the same root and grow in the same soil. Acceptance is a flower. That flower is scented so nicely. I can't wait for you to smell it. You have my energy when there is need. All the best and the best is in you.