The Freedom of Commitment

One of my kids has been vegan for 5 or 6 years. Not once have I heard him try to talk anyone else into it.

I told him a few years ago that I was proud of him for being committed and honoring his love and compassion for animals. In reply, he said to me: “You care about animals and the environment too, don’t you? Why don’t you eat vegan too and not just be proud of me?”

It was a powerful statement. So I committed to being a vegan the next calendar year. 

That commitment not only made eating choices simpler (there are few options on restaurant menus for vegans), it also forced me to get creative about my meals - I was more exploratory in the kitchen that year.

Don't get me wrong, it was also challenging. That's why most of us don't make commitments that would actually honor ourselves and our values - it's challenging.

Yet, commitments can be empowering.

For at least a few years over the last handful, I went sugar-free (except during vacations). The best part of this commitment, for me, was that I didn’t have to drain my willpower in resisting sweets at gatherings. I had already made my choice before I even saw the sweets laid out on the table before me.

I just had one job: find satisfaction without them. 

Now that I’m allowing myself to eat sweets again, each tray of cookies and box of donuts releases an inner conversation between the part of me that wants to indulge, the part of me that knows the negative impacts, and the part of me that wants to calculate it out and reason as rationally as possible. 

It can be exhausting! It highlights a common principle of productivity to “minimize unnecessary decisions.”

(Hm. I’m committing, right now, to give up sweets for the rest of this year (except one at holiday and birthday meals). Why not simplify my life and honor my commitment to health and well-being?)

Here's another example: I’m committed to being unconditionally loving in my life. This morning, when I woke up stressed and anxious, I didn’t have to go very far to determine what to do about my stress and anxiousness - I turned toward it with love and gratitude, and then there was really nothing else to do. (Gratitude is an expression of love, by the way.)

Another commitment of mine is that I act from inspiration as soon as possible.

What inspiration has been calling to you lately, or perhaps even for years? Without knowing what the path might actually entail, are you willing to act from that inspiration and make a commitment?

I sometimes think about commitment that it’s a masculine, yang, or warrior-type action. Mostly, though, for me, commitment is an honoring of truth within myself. It’s an aligning of my actions with my values, cares, and who I know myself to be. 

Where in your life would it make a difference to make a commitment? How might that commitment simplify your life and elevate your integrity?

Much Love. ❤️