Personally, I don’t feel as though I am a “victim” of anything. As a matter of fact, I believe myself to be the perpetrator of wrongdoing most of the time; however, that is not to say that I do not have the capacity to instinctively fall into a mindset of victimhood, for the mentality of victimhood is far easier than accepting responsibility for my actions and my life. Although the more strenuous path (and, in the end, more fruitful), the latter is the true definition of “karma.” Karma is not something where one hopes to be the eventual beneficiary of something we perceive as “good” because we did something we perceived as “good” before. No, karma is accepting my responsibility in life – the understanding that I am not a victim. This might sound dark, but even with regard to life itself, are we not volunteers? We could choose to “log out” at any given moment, can we not?
Undoubtedly, there are people whom I have mistreated and wronged, people whom I have been particularly mean to, and people whom I’ve manipulated. Today, I shall do my best to accept responsibility for those things and to rectify or repair any relationship or situation I possibly can, most notably by ceasing to continue doing them. Of course, I want forgiveness from select individuals, but you know what? The people from whom I would love to have forgiveness do not want much to do with me these days, and that’s fine. That is not my karma; that is their karma. If one wants to live a life of resentment and unforgiveness, I pray one day that the victim mindset is removed from them and replaced with the reality of the volunteer.
That is enough about others, though, right? We don’t live another’s life; we only live ours. What one chooses to do or how one chooses to live has nothing to do with me (or us, since you’re reading). Today’s “reflection” is for peering inward. Where or what do I need to take responsibility for? Even in situations where I have convinced myself that *I* was wronged, what part did I play in making the situation displeasing to me? Am I playing the victim? If I am, then I am for sure playing a losing game. You could even say I would be playing a character that does not exist – there are no victims, only volunteers. Go Vols.
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