It's finally here, the last agreement, "Always Do Your Best." It sounds so simple, routine. I even have it posted on my classroom wall as one of my class expectations. As it is this last agreement that fuels the first three.
"Always do your best, no more and no less." We are multidimensional human beings. We are composed of layers and everything around us is alive and changing constantly. Our ability to do our best changes, even from one moment to the next. Our health, moods, and feelings can all change and when they do, they directly effect the level that our best may be at in any particular moment. But, as long as we are doing the best we can in that moment, that is all we can ask of ourselves.
"Doing your best, you are going to live your life intensely. You are going to be productive, you are going to be good to yourself, because you will be giving yourself to your family, to your community, to everything. But it is the actions that is going to make you feel intensely happy. When you always do your best, you take action. Doing your best is taking the actions because you love it, not because you expect a reward."
I found this section in this chapter thought provoking. Way back when I wrote a few posts about finding what is right for you... as far as where you live, what you do, and who you share your life with. If you are not living the life that is right for you, I find it hard for one to fully (wholeheartedly to the very core) commit to it. If that is the case, how can you do your very best? It would make it very easy to get caught up in the reward rather than doing it for the pure joy and love of it.
"When you do your best, you don't give the Judge (you are the judge) the opportunity to find you guilty or to blame you. If you have done your best and the Judge tries to judge you according to your Book of Laws, you've got the answer, "I did my best." There are no regrets... this agreement is really going to set you free." This section is what really struck a chord with me. Looking back on my life with my husband it is easy now to notice warning signs or red flags of issues that needed to be addressed. It is so easy to get caught up in the "what ifs" and just the wonder of what could have been if only... I made mistakes. I can see how had I acted differently, perhaps a different result would have occurred, but perhaps maybe not. However, that line of thinking is only beneficial to the me of the present and the future so that I don't repeat them. That line of thinking does not change the past or help me to heal from it. When I think of my actions, at any given moment, I am confident that they were tainted with love. Pure love, because that is what I felt for my husband. That knowledge leads me to believe that I did my very best for him, for me, for us, for our family. I can honestly sit here and say that I have no regrets. Yes, my mind does wander from time to time to those what ifs... but in those moments, knowing what I knew only then and feeling what I felt back then, I did do the best I could. I also do not regret the love, the marriage, the life I had with my husband despite how traumatic it ended. In those moments, I felt happy and I felt loved. I can also accept and believe that my husband did his best too. He was a good man. His best was tainted with love, but it was also tainted with his sickness. It was eventually that sickness that took over and instead of my husband being able to do his best, his best was to basically fight for mental survival. I regret his final action for him. But it was his decision, his action, not mine and I had to learn to accept that.
These 4 Agreements have had a profound effect on me. When I read this book I was able to make so many connections to not only events that occurred in my life, but random thoughts that I have had throughout my life as well. In some ways, this book helped to connect some of the dots and to help make sense of some loose ends. When I have been successful at being impeccable with my word, with not taking things personally, in not making assumptions, and in doing my best... I do believe it if freeing. I've felt a personal freedom that is extremely peaceful and joyous. No, no... you will not see me on an infomercial, lol... For me and for me alone this has helped and if that sparks anyone's desire or interest, go for it! If not... I won't take it personally, lol.
"Always do your best, no more and no less." We are multidimensional human beings. We are composed of layers and everything around us is alive and changing constantly. Our ability to do our best changes, even from one moment to the next. Our health, moods, and feelings can all change and when they do, they directly effect the level that our best may be at in any particular moment. But, as long as we are doing the best we can in that moment, that is all we can ask of ourselves.
"Doing your best, you are going to live your life intensely. You are going to be productive, you are going to be good to yourself, because you will be giving yourself to your family, to your community, to everything. But it is the actions that is going to make you feel intensely happy. When you always do your best, you take action. Doing your best is taking the actions because you love it, not because you expect a reward."
I found this section in this chapter thought provoking. Way back when I wrote a few posts about finding what is right for you... as far as where you live, what you do, and who you share your life with. If you are not living the life that is right for you, I find it hard for one to fully (wholeheartedly to the very core) commit to it. If that is the case, how can you do your very best? It would make it very easy to get caught up in the reward rather than doing it for the pure joy and love of it.
"When you do your best, you don't give the Judge (you are the judge) the opportunity to find you guilty or to blame you. If you have done your best and the Judge tries to judge you according to your Book of Laws, you've got the answer, "I did my best." There are no regrets... this agreement is really going to set you free." This section is what really struck a chord with me. Looking back on my life with my husband it is easy now to notice warning signs or red flags of issues that needed to be addressed. It is so easy to get caught up in the "what ifs" and just the wonder of what could have been if only... I made mistakes. I can see how had I acted differently, perhaps a different result would have occurred, but perhaps maybe not. However, that line of thinking is only beneficial to the me of the present and the future so that I don't repeat them. That line of thinking does not change the past or help me to heal from it. When I think of my actions, at any given moment, I am confident that they were tainted with love. Pure love, because that is what I felt for my husband. That knowledge leads me to believe that I did my very best for him, for me, for us, for our family. I can honestly sit here and say that I have no regrets. Yes, my mind does wander from time to time to those what ifs... but in those moments, knowing what I knew only then and feeling what I felt back then, I did do the best I could. I also do not regret the love, the marriage, the life I had with my husband despite how traumatic it ended. In those moments, I felt happy and I felt loved. I can also accept and believe that my husband did his best too. He was a good man. His best was tainted with love, but it was also tainted with his sickness. It was eventually that sickness that took over and instead of my husband being able to do his best, his best was to basically fight for mental survival. I regret his final action for him. But it was his decision, his action, not mine and I had to learn to accept that.
These 4 Agreements have had a profound effect on me. When I read this book I was able to make so many connections to not only events that occurred in my life, but random thoughts that I have had throughout my life as well. In some ways, this book helped to connect some of the dots and to help make sense of some loose ends. When I have been successful at being impeccable with my word, with not taking things personally, in not making assumptions, and in doing my best... I do believe it if freeing. I've felt a personal freedom that is extremely peaceful and joyous. No, no... you will not see me on an infomercial, lol... For me and for me alone this has helped and if that sparks anyone's desire or interest, go for it! If not... I won't take it personally, lol.
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