Heaven Can Wait. I'm Enjoying My Misery!

"Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything wise in this world." Helen Keller

Of all the possible blocks to spiritual ecstasy, I am convinced that self-pity is the greatest one. It keeps us from moving forward, from doing our best work, from tackling our toughest challenges. It says to us in that really ugly small voice, "You're a victim. You are justified in your complaining, your whining, your suffering. Keep it up. It feels too good to stop. So what if you  get nowhere, do nothing, be nothing. You get to feel sorry for yourself. And that's what matters to you, isn't it? ISN'T IT??" And too often, we just curl up and agree with that ugly voice.

Poor you. Poor abused you. Poor mistreated you.

Getting annoyed yet? I hope so. Sometimes it takes a kick in the butt to get us to realize how absorbed we are in our own pain, especially the self-inflicted kind. And that pain has become a bad habit. How do you break habits? You get yourself away from the source. You stop buying cigarettes, you stay away from the bars, you don't go to Old Town to seek out your dealer.

And you get off the couch, wipe away the tears, go somewhere and get involved. Become useful for a change instead of waiting for the world to lift you up.

• Volunteer
• Get back into church or mosque or synagogue or temple
• Take more trips with your family or even by yourself
• Develop a new hobby, or rekindle an old one
• Join a club
• Join a group
• Join a game

There are hundreds of ways to get out of your shell and back onto the market. But none of them will help if you don't make the first move.

We want you out here with us. You might be the one who brings the winning point.

Come on. Get with it. The world needs you.