BRAVE: Sitting with Difficulty

On this page, we will consider how to handle things we are worrying about and how to accept or let go of things we do not have any control over. Please take a look at this decision tree to help you think differently about things that are causing you anxiety.

Next, a poem from Rumi that, read in one way, could be seen as encouraging us to be mindful of our thoughts and emotions. How would you interpret it?

The Guest House

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.

Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

by Rumi

Taken from SELECTED POEMS by Rumi, Translated by Coleman Barks (Penguin Classics, 2004)

Finally, we will end with some videos on how to practice radical acceptance, thinking about why we wrestle with our thoughts, and finishing with a calming breathing exercise from our BRAVE YouTube channel. If you find it helpful, try to remember that your thoughts are not facts.