is a book by Debbie Ford that I read a few years ago and that had a profound effect on how I see myself and my behaviour. I had always thought that I have to be hiding away my negative thoughts and the dark sides and experiences of myself. They were still there of course and not that well hidden, since they influenced my behaviour. And they still do. What changed as a result of me reading the book is that I acknowledged that they exist and started shining the light on them – giving them the light of the day – my attention. This way I wasn’t at the mercy of my shadow, but I could choose to react out fear or imprint of my past experiences or act as I wanted to act at this point in time. I’m still learning about my shadow side, but I’m not afraid of it and I’m not trying to hide it away from myself. I try to be kind to myself even if I don’t like the way I have acted.

I was very sad to learn today that Debbie Ford has passed away. Even though I had never met her in person, she has touched my life through her book and I am very thankful that she has lived and shared her wisdom.