Observe.
That's how you crank up the heat on KNOWING YOU. I watch
myself when in the presence of CONTRAST. I'm convinced that
God sends to me things and people of contrast in order to
fully know and further define WHO I AM.
Observe.
What do you tend to do in the heat of upset?
How do you react?
How do you push the upset away. And when you finally let
the upset in to teach
you, what does it say about you? What is it that you're
trying to avoid? What is it about yourself that scares the
vittles out of ya?
What
a world of difference this makes for me in every situation
of life. Rather than fighting things and people 
who
"buck" me, I step back and consider once again
who I am.
If someone
makes a derogatory remark about me, I used to fight it or
push it off and then become sour toward the remarker. Today
I'm doing something much more constructive (& fun) with
such things. A comment fires by me. I notice what happens
inside of me. Anything? If there's an OUCH, then I want
to go there and consider what it was about that comment
that I fear is on some level true. If there's no OUCH, then
I simply affirm to myself who I am. "No, that's
not an accurate statement of who I am. This over here is
who I am."
What takes place
with this is quite stabilizing. As I accept life's invitation
to redefine myself (to remember
who I am), I find myself stronger with every approaching
situation. I'm less willing to bend my values yet more willing
to love, I'm stronger when my friends need my strength yet
able to be genuine, I'm surer of my course when life's circumstances
are trying to knock down my door. My resolves and values
stand their ground more firmly and 
show
up as LOVE rather then as anger. I'm simply more grounded
in who I am with every situation.
This all comes
from my HUNGER TO KNOW ME. And as I'm about the business
of knowing me vs. manipulating
everything and everyone to keep the darn duckies in a row,
this business of KNOWING MYSELF moves me to a much more
OK state with myself. And that, my friend, shows
up very positively in all relationships in my life.
