Are you running away from the very thing that can help you most?  I think we all do that without realizing it.   We strive so hard to be happy and have what we want and to feel comfortable that we avoid embracing the times when we don’t feel that way.

It is during the times of discomfort, sadness, turmoil and pain that growth occurs.  If everything in life was just the way we wanted all the time, we would not appreciate the good times.  Suppose two women are the same age, live in similar homes, both have loving marriages and two happy children.  One has had an ideal life – great parents, happy childhood, always had whatever she needed and most of what she wanted.  For the other woman, life has been a struggle.  She grew up in foster homes, had financial difficulties, lost a child in an accident and is a cancer survivor.  Which one of these women do you think appreciates her current happy life situation the most?

Instead of striving to avoid difficulties, why not embrace them?  When troubles come, ask yourself what you can learn from the situation.  How can you use this to make yourself better?  What can you change that will improve your life?

Stop running, embrace your current situation and grow.  That is when you can live . . . your life to the fullest.