Whether
we like or not our baggage is part of us. Our bags don’t magically disappear simply
because we’ve ignored them. In fact, I often find that’s when they seem to fill
up with even more junk. What we have to do is to identify our bags and
claim them. It’s only when we have a bag in our hands that we can start to unpack it
and see it for what it is - a worn-out bag containing things that may not mean
anything anymore.
Unpacking
our bags is an ongoing process that’s often painful, confronting and
uncomfortable, especially when you come face to face with the items you’ve chosen to keep in your
bag. You see that’s the thing. I believe we do have a choice as to what we keep
in the bag, the meaning we attach to it and how long we let it weigh on our
shoulders. This is because it is a conscious decision to muster up the courage
to take responsibility for the bag, and have the compassion forgive oneself and
others for packing it in the first place.
As
for me, I have my share (both the emotional and leather kind). There are some bags that I’ve managed to unpack and put on the
shelf, some that I am in the process of unpacking and some that are still
circling that conveyor belt. At the moment I find that I can only unpack one bag at the
time. But I am determined to get through them. I don't want any musty old bag tainting what
I do in my life and how I live it. While they may be part of me, they don’t have
to define me and that is well and truly my choice.
"You may not control all the events that happen to you,
but you can decide not to be reduced by them."
Maya Angelou
