Happy #85: Learn from the Experience.

Fireworks, dancing, tears of joy, cheering, happiness, and a whole lot of love. One word was in their hearts that night. Freedom.

I was heartened by the Egyptian people and the pure resolve that secured their personal victory. I wondered as I watched them celebrating in the streets how they must have been feeling two or three days before the light broke through the darkness...

In his broken English one man said through his tears, "I feel like I was dead. Now I feel like I'm alive. I'm very happy now. I'm very happy to be an Egyptian now."

I've been inspired by their ability to hold on in their darkest moments when they had no idea the light was about to break.

I fully intended to get right back to the story I started a week ago. Turns out it was harder to tell than I thought it would be. It still is.

Truthfully, I'm not certain I'm ready to tell it. But I did want to take a minute to acknowledge the inspiration the Egyptians have been, and comment on something I've been learning in the process of what life is taking me through personally.

God and/or life gives us experiences. They are rarely what we expect, hard as some us of try to craft our lives in a way that we would like to see them actually go/turn out. These experiences can be surprising, sometimes wildly wonderful, periodically shocking, and now and again just flat out disheartening. Even heartbreaking.

But the thing about experiences, whatever they are, is that they contribute to the process of our learning and growth--for our good. And if we look closely, they are for the good of those around us.

This isn't always easy to see or understand. And sometimes it's not such a snap to feel good about whatever may (or may not) be happening. Especially if the experiences we're going through do not fit our perspective and/or world view of "good" experiences--like getting into a bad car accident less than an hour after you petition heaven for a miracle, for example.

But here's the first definition in the dictionary about hope:

HOPE  
noun, verb, hoped, hop·ing.
–noun
1.
the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.

I think if we can surrender to the process, to the experience, choose hope, and hold on to our resolve to change whatever it is we're trying to change about ourselves and/or our lives, perhaps we will find the learning meant to be the means by which the change comes.

The real progress is in the process, afterall.

Experiences come into our lives, regardless. It is our personal journey through the experience, and our personal accountability that defines us.

Learn from the experience. Whatever it is.

And have hope.

Because spring is almost here. : )