A life you are excited about...

You deserve to be happy.
You deserve to live a life you are excited about.
Don’t let others make you forget that.

— Unknown

This makes me think about the scrutiny we face with parents, extended family, and society as a whole. The movie “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” does an amazing job of dramatizing the in-congruency of originating from one culture and growing up in another. I lived this scenario. My father was born in Italy and moved to Canada when he was 13. Maintaining his prized and precious Italian culture was non-negotiable and it was a bit mind-bending straddling these two very different worlds. When our closest family members are unable to accept some of our choices and God-given desires, we face rejection, and abandonment in the extreme case. What is the answer? My favourite therapist says that for our own health and well-being, we must find a way to be seen and accepted for who we really are. If you had a Dad like mine, that’s a pretty scary thought. As I got older, I did manage to speak up for myself (felt the fear and did it anyway!). He couldn’t really understand some of the things I was doing, but I did feel more accepted by him as I stayed the course (for example, he was a government guy and thought business was inexplicably linked with greed. I’m in business, so that was a disconnect, Lol. As an aside, my Dad’s been gone twenty years now and I can understand his issue with business and greed. Think financial crisis of 2008). Just sayin’ :) Hugs. XO

Blessings,

Chatgirl