Day 4 of 21: An Affirmation a Day (rage against the cynics)

We live in a cynical world - Jerry McGuire

The World is a cruel place, Petrosinella, and it wounds the weak. - Kate Forsythe

The World's a cruel place,/ You are baptized as "body"/ The moment you stop breathing/ The soul appropriates your name,/ The physical you is set aflame. - Preeti Anand

He saw the world in its true light, as a place where nothing had ever been any good and nothing of significance done; - Kingsley Amis

Platitudes do little to combat the cynicism and bleakness, and generalized fatalist perspective that seems to pervade the internet, literature, and discussion forums these days. It breaks apart not just the way we see the world, but how we view ourselves. We, rather, I, lose our sense of who we are, at our core. 

For example, I forget that I am smart. I forget that I'm a good person, I forget that I'm capable. So much so that I find my self crippled with self-doubt, apologizing for every thing, and spiraling into a place of ineffective idleness.

Finding a calm yoga practice when there is chaos in one's head is a fool's errand. We need affirmations to combat the voices of negativity, but not ones that are nothing more than distracting smoke. Rather, affirmation need to be from a true sense of self, of checking in and remembering one's real value.

What am I? What do I know about me that I can assert, affirm, and accept as valid, that I can repeat daily IN THE MIRROR? I am in better health than I was 15 years ago (I am blessed, I am fortunate, I am grateful). I can make people laugh (I am funny). I like doing crossword puzzles (I am clever). I'm really good at giving gifts (I am generous, caring, sensitive). 

Here's a list of other affirmations I found that we all might try to get us through not just the rough times, but to keep reinforcing, building that muscle of self-import and inner wisdom to sustain us.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/affirmations_b_3527028