Saying No

"There have been many times when I have said yes when I meant no, afraid of displeasing others, and even more afraid of being viewed selfish.  But long enough on this journey, and we come to realize an even deeper aspect of all this:  that those who truly love us will never knowingly ask us to be other than we are.  The unwavering truth is that when we agree to any demand, request, or condition that is contrary to our souls's nature, the cost is that precious life force is drained off our core."  Mark Nepo

Sometimes in life it is imperative we say no -- or, perhaps it is better said that we say 'yes' to ourselves instead of to others.  I just read an article in Psychology Today that tells of the research depicting how damaging to the brain the word "no" is.  But there are times we must say the equivalent of no to something or someone, and say yes to what is our own journey.  This comes up in caregiving.  The demands of the care receiver can be very wearing.  Perhaps a way to cope with this is to think of it as saying yes to ourselves when we must -- for our own body and soul health -- say yes to what we want, which is the equivalent of saying no to what someone else wants us to do.  This is not selfish.  We must be guardians of our own truth and life path.  If we are not, who will be?!