Black or white. Either/or. All or nothing. Win or lose. On or off. The list goes on and on. You get the idea. It’s binary thinking that keeps me from enjoying the full-spectrum life I’ve been given. I have come a long way in recent years with regard to how I see myself and who it’s possible for me to be and become. But every once in a while I catch a glimpse of how many of these self-limiting thought patterns are still running loose in my brain. And based on my experience with the rest of the transformational growth process I am in the midst of, it seems unlikely that these patterns will all just disappear overnight. But the healing begins when I start to notice. Once I notice, then I can start asking questions. When I recognize that I’m engaging in this self-limiting pattern of binary thinking, then it becomes possible to explore other options. Is that really true? Is that really all there is to this story? What other possibilities might be lurking in the shadows, just waiting for me to step beyond my own self-imposed walls? What might happen if I can begin to learn to take half a step sideways and shift my perspective? Instead of black and white, can I perhaps notice even just a glimpse of a fuller spectrum of color? Instead of either/or, what happens when I ponder both/and as an alternative way of seeing the situation? Is it really all or nothing, or is doing my best and landing somewhere in the middle worth trying? Perhaps I can start practicing the art of holding two different experiences at the same time. Happy and sad – grateful and yearning – content and longing. I don’t have to get it perfect this first time, or the hundredth time, or ever. I only have to take a single step in the direction of changing the patterns. And then another step after that. What might happen? Who knows! The only way to find out is to try.