Acceptance

"This one is very easily misunderstood. People might think that it means that whatever happens they should just accept it. No one is saying just accept it. Ultimately it means realizing how things are and finding ways to be in a wise relationship with them and then act out of that clarity of vision." ~ Jon Kabat-Zinn
 
Acceptance and surrender are often difficult for people because they feel that they are “giving in.”  But you are not giving in; you are not saying that what happened was okay.  What you are doing is acknowledging that the situation happened, you are accepting that this is the way things are at this moment.  From that level of acceptance, you get to choose how to respond to the situation. You accept and release the struggle and suffering that we tend to dwell in for too long.
 
I accept that my house was burglarized.  It doesn’t mean that I liked it.  However, I get to choose my reaction and how I will live my life.  I will not live in fear daily that the burglars will come back. If my house is every burglarized again, I will deal with it then, but I will not waste energy worrying.  I did things to protect my house. I got an alarm and a more secure door. I acted from a place of wisdom and moved on.
 
Think of a situation in your life that you are still hanging on to.  How can you practice acceptance of what happened and move on?