"As I Began To Love Myself" is a wonderful poem by Charlie Chaplin that teaches us the value of love and life
Everyone knows Charlie Chaplin, especially his movies. The great actor and screenwriter is also known for a beautiful poem, "As I Began To Love Myself". Exactly when he composed it, it is still not clear, perhaps when he was about 70 years old.
We like to think that he wrote this poem in those later years, with a different awareness of life, more mature, and that was obtained through personal experiences.
After all, his poem deals with this and speaks of living and all that it brings with it. Because life without love is nothing and love without values is nothing but a shallow feeling.
What Chaplin wants to convey is the need to learn to love yourself so that you can start to think about and accept what surrounds us, to appreciate the little things we have, and to live more serenely, enjoying the moments we have, without worrying too much about the future.
This is life and although we cannot control every single thing, we can at least try to better ourselves to make the most of the time we have.
As I began to love myself I found that anguish and emotional suffering
are only warning signs that I was living against my own truth.
Today, I know, this is “AUTHENTICITY”.
As I began to love myself I understood how much it can offend somebody
As I try to force my desires on this person, even though I knew the time
was not right and the person was not ready for it, and even though this
person was me. Today I call it “RESPECT”.
As I began to love myself I stopped craving for a different life,
and I could see that everything that surrounded me was inviting me to grow.
Today I call it “MATURITY”.
As I began to love myself I understood that at any circumstance,
I am in the right place at the right time, and everything happens
at the exactly right moment. So I could be calm.
Today I call it “SELF-CONFIDENCE”.
As I began to love myself I quit stealing my own time,
and I stopped designing huge projects for the future.
Today, I only do what brings me joy and happiness, things I love to do
and that make my heart cheer, and I do them in my own way and in
my own rhythm. Today I call it “SIMPLICITY”.
As I began to love myself I freed myself of anything that is no good for
my health – food, people, things, situations, and everything that drew
me down and away from myself. At first, I called this attitude
a healthy egoism. Today I know it is “LOVE OF ONESELF”.
As I began to love myself I quit trying to always be right, and ever since
I was wrong less of the time. Today I discovered that is “MODESTY”.
As I began to love myself I refused to go on living in the past and worry
about the future. Now, I only live for the moment, where EVERYTHING
is happening. Today I live each day, day by day, and I call it “FULFILLMENT”.
As I began to love myself I recognized that my mind can disturb me
and it can make me sick. But as I connected it to my heart, my
mind became a valuable ally. Today I call this
connection “WISDOM OF THE HEART”.
We no longer need to fear arguments, confrontations or any kind of problems
with ourselves or others. Even stars collide, and out of their crashing
new worlds are born. Today I know THAT IS “LIFE”!
