Continue to Move, Forgive and Grow... 

I like the term "continue" because it's like a green light that means the red light is gone, the halt is over, and it's time to proceed. Continue appears to be a procedure that leads to you just moving on. If you encounter any obstacles or ups and downs on the road, simply learn to be alert or take care of any rocks that may appear along the way and find your way. In truth, philosophical growth is only possible in life if you learn to move on, forgive those who have wronged you along the way, and focus solely on how you may progress. How easily, when a child begins walking and falls on the floor and begins crying, we run towards them, nicely and calmly telling them to forgive the floor, step, or rock that caused them pain, and we try to console them, telling them not to cry and telling them to get up and move on? And what do we do when we are in real-life situations or working with a lot of stress and responsibilities coming our way? We move yet continue to be wounded, we do not forgive, we raise our tension, we overthink, and many other things. 

Recently, we had one parent visit us. They had a 6-year-old child who was very intelligent and was able to walk and understand whatever we said. In fact, when his parents were talking to me, he was listening to us with total concentration, and he was very well aware that we were talking about him. The child had seizures at an earlier age, and his walking and other activities were delayed. He started talking and walking at the age of two and a half. His father was a PhD, and his mother was a double graduate. They made me understand everything they went through, what they did for the child, and what kind of treatment they were giving the child. They said the child does all gestures, and we understand that, and he doesn't make any effort to speak. In their talking, I realised that they were moving on with the child's difficulties, but they were not ready to forgive themselves. It's ok, we have a special child, and we need to work with him. That negative thought process was not allowing them to grow, as was the child.

Lord Krishna, at a very young age, had to fight with many devils, like Putna, who came to kill him; Turnavat, the devil who took him to the sky and tried to kill him; Bakasur, who also came to kill; Vatsasur, the devil who also came to kill; Denkasur, who came to kill as a donkey; Pralambasur, who became his close friend and tried to kill; and Kalia, the snake, who was killed by Lord Krishna and made the Yamuna river clean. Now all these devils came to kill due to an order received from King Kangsa. He knew as individuals they were good, but circumstances made them monsters, and they all have special powers, so rather than cribbing, discussing, or waiting for them to be more monsters, Lord Krishna gave them forgiveness and made them free from all the wrong deeds, made them move towards good deeds, or made them free from their sins. In today's age, many of us do the wrong things or are not moving on the right path. God is coming to warn us about calamities and also show us the ways to come out of them and lead us to grow.

Sometimes we leave with a thought process that affects or hurts us. If any silly mistake is also made, we carry on with that, and our movement becomes slow or restricted. I know many female drivers who, once they drive and by chance meet with an accident, their car gets damaged, or they get hurt, just decide to stop driving, maybe because of scolding from their male partner or because they lose confidence. Mistakes can be made by anyone; we are all not perfect. One should not leave certain things, which are necessities. I remember my elder daughter's first time she stood for election in school, and she lost. She came home and cried. She also felt her friends did not support her. She cried a lot. I said it was the first step; at least you made an effort to compete, forget, and forgive what your friends did. Restart and attempt to figure out where you went wrong or where you need to pay more attention before moving forward. After continuous efforts, she was vice-captain, captain, and then Ib head girl.

Constantly thinking negatively may make a problem seem worse than it actually is, depriving us of enjoyment and mental tranquilly. Such ways of thinking become an easy way to think negatively, which leads to sadness, anxiety, and poor self-worth. When challenged with an ocean of such unfavourable ideas, we start to question whether there is a better approach for overcoming them than simply using willpower. Hence, positive thinking is very necessary. For instance, if you make it a habit to count your blessings, you might be more able to recognise the good things in life that endure even in the wake of a traumatic experience. Additionally, even when you are having a hard time, supporting others may boost your mood and give you a positive perspective on life. 

Continuous efforts are needed in life. Many times, parents of special-needs kids come to us and cry or get nervous about how to deal with the child. We always work with a holistic approach; physical, psychological, emotional, spiritual, and physiological parameters all need to be considered to make movement in the correct direction. As a special child, you will not be able to cope as well as any normal child can, so at times you need to forgive mistakes made by them, and we need to guide and encourage them to move towards growth to overcome all the challenges of life that they face. Many times kids throw tantrums, cry, scream, or sometimes they also remove clothes or pee in the session, but as professionals or parents, we need to forgive and guide them and make efforts to channel their abrupt behaviours. Every individual can be made to realise that they need to look at the situation at start converting uncomfortable to comfortable. Complaining about being comfortable or not anyone can but fighting with it and coming out of it, is the one who moves on, forgive and actually grow in life.

Inner freedom is a prerequisite for outer freedom. External freedom entails taking on responsibility while being aware of the steps required to adjust to one's surroundings. Independence of thinking, emotion, and behaviour can be seen by the absence of outside influences on those things. Being true to yourself and accepting who you are is essential. Understanding what your inner soul or conscience need is your biggest achievement. Lack of self-acceptance and other influences will definitely prevent you from being who you are, which will cause many mental health problems. Forgiving someone brings peace in your life and gives you an opportunity to look beyond those bad circumstances and eventually, you start doing positive thinking.

Continue developing and learning every day. Never give up. The most important life lesson is to never stop learning. Both learning and knowledge are limitless. There is always more to learn, no matter how old you get or how much you already know. It ought to be a commitment for all time. Continue to go forward. Believe in yourself, face your issues head-on, and go deep within yourself to overcome fears. Never let outside influences or people drag you down. Whatever occurred, it was for the best. Everything that is happening is for the better. Also, always remember to tell yourself, "If I want to grow, I need to learn to move on, forgive those who hurt me and just be positive in life, as everything that occurs will be for the best."