Greetings. I'm Tara Brock and I'd like to welcome you to these podcasts. While the

talks and meditations are offered freely, we'd very much appreciate your support. To

make a donation or learn more about my schedule, please visit tarbrach.com and our IMCW.org.

Thank you.

As many of you know, these Wednesday nights are podcasted now, so we are joined internationally

by people around the globe listening, which is really a nice feeling. And I get interesting

correspondence and one of the notes I got from one person who listens every week. I didn't

write it down exactly what he said. He said, acceptance as it relates to not being a

doormat. He said, I think it would make a very interesting talk. At times I struggle with

how to react to difficult situations with acceptance, but not being a doormat. Thank you.

This is one of a number of emails I've gotten over the years with different questions and

confusion about what does it really mean to accept? I remember when I was touring a book

tour for radical acceptance, we were on the brink of invading Iraq and people were saying,

radical acceptance. Does that mean we just sit back and let it happen? You know, radical

acceptance. Does that mean we don't do what we can to protect our environment? So what

I'd like to do is explore tonight what genuine acceptance means. You know, what is there's

misunderstandings? And then what's a liberating quality of acceptance? The kind of acceptance

that really frees our hearts. So that will be the exploration tonight. And I'll begin

right out front with a bit of a definition, which is that acceptance is really recognizing the

truth of this moment, what's happening right in this moment without resistance, with openness.

So acceptance doesn't have to do with other moments with something out there. It has to do,

and this is why it's radical, with a very immediate openness to the life that's right here.

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