May 8

INTEGRITY MONTH: DAY 8: “You know yourself what you are worth in your own eyes; and at what price you will sell yourself. For men sell themselves at various prices.” –  Epictetus

We have all had to compromise our principles at times in life. I used to do this because I believed I would not be able to make a living if I did not comply with things that I knew were wrong in the jobs I held. It would eat me alive, and after some time, I would leave anyway. Fear and integrity cannot go together. If someone is operating a business that is stealing and lying and cheating, it becomes a challenge for us to remain integral working in that business. Some people believe that those who are in sales have to lie for a living (or attorneys or many other folks), but I have known people who were very honest and integral in their performance of these jobs. And there are those we believe will be completely honest who are not; such as priests and others devoted to religious ideals and who cannot live up to them. We are all human, and finding our integrity and walking down the road with it flies in the face of many of our cultural practices and indoctrination. We are taught conflicting things along the way, such as fear-based thinking about money and work and the way of the world. It creates greed and gluttony and the idea that we have to grab those things because there is not enough for everyone. That is why we live in a world where people hoard their resources and others go without. No spiritual principles are involved in that kind of teaching or learning. It takes some time when we come to this place, to get those into our way of thinking. I can say it has come to me in bits and pieces over these years, but I finally made peace with knowing my bank balance is not a reflection of my true value and worth. That my car or home do not indicate what kind of person I am; nor do I need to stress about any of those things, because the Universe is going to work things out without my stress and worry…which did nothing to resolve those things for me anyway. Life is so much more peaceful and relaxed today than it ever has been. I get a bit stressed about finances and then I let it go much more quickly than it used to happen for me. This is great news! Progress, not perfection. But I no longer sell myself out because I think it is the only way I can make it. And I don’t have to manipulate or control things to see the benefits of an honest way of life and how that manifests. Sitting still when I want to run around trying to fix things that appear to be broken is not as frequent a past-time for me today…yay! And I have so much greater value in my own eyes, which is reflected in the eyes of others… and so it goes. Integrity is a great gift; but it has taken many years for me to feel it in all areas of my life. We get what we get when we do what we do…this is a long, slow process. And one I wouldn’t exchange for the world! Namaste!