“… each of us must decide for ourselves how to translate outrage into mercy.”  — Sister Helen Prejean, IN SWEET COMPANY: CONVERSATIONS WITH EXTRAORDINARY WOMEN ABOUT LIVING A SPIRITUAL LIFE

Piece of Advice # 5 When things hit the fan as they are bound to do, and you feel angry or discouraged or in unfamiliar territory, borrow energy from the good times of the past to stay hopeful and positive about the challenges in the present. The ability to use your imagination and memory to transcend time and space is not “woo-woo.” We use our memory and imagination frequently, often to our detriment, each time we zero in on a mistake we’ve made in the past and revolve it round and round in our consciousness like some sinister haunting that goes bump in the night. Using imagination and memory to lift you above the tussle doesn’t mean you sweep the present under the carpet, but that you trust the person you loved enough to marry or the hope-filled plans that went temporarily awry can emerge in a new and better version once you reinvigorate your attitude, learn what you need to learn, and lay down your arms. 

Piece of Advice # 6: Find things to laugh about together. Laughter that is shared is the poetry in a good relationship.

Number 7: Keep each other’s secrets. From other people and when you are really, really tempted to throw those private confidences in the other’s face just to prove you are right about something that will never mean as much to either of you as knowing you are someone your partner can trust their heart to. 

Stay tuned for 3 more tips in the days to come.

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