I
have always felt that there is good energy in the building where I
live. Now I know why. Recently one of my neighbors told me that long
ago, the local hospital was just a couple of blocks from here and so
this building was built as housing for the nurses who worked there so
that they could live within walking distance. No wonder I always feel
lots of good juju here.
There is now a large sign more than 6 feet tall out front advertising the property for sale.
Every
day I wake up, I express gratitude for having another day. I also
express gratitude for being able to live here and affirm that for today,
and for as long as it lasts, I will be happy to be here. When the time
comes that someone else buys the property then I will know whether I can
stay or have to move. Since I cannot afford to buy the property, that
decision is not within my hands. I maintain my peace of mind by
affirming that I am happy today. Other decisions will be made in the
future.
Sometimes it is hard for us to stay in the present at
times like these. I know that some of my clients have had difficult
transitions finding new jobs after being laid off, or getting out of
problem relationships and finding new ones.
We have to remain
confident that there is a solution for us, even if we cannot see it
right now. Sometimes it takes time, and sometimes we may not be able to
see it because our attention has been focused elsewhere.
In the
bigger picture of our lives, sometimes we need to take a step back and
reflect so recognize why we are where we are and where we are going
next.
What did we get out of being here? How did our life change
for the better? What is the next thing for us to do? Do we have a plan
for our progress? Do we have a burning desire to change our direction?
Each time we come to one of these important transitions, we have an opportunity to choose again.
As
we look back, note how the choices we made then were made with the best
information we had at the time. We acted on it in a way that made sense
to us. So now we act with the information we have now. At each
birthday, we look at our future through the lens of experience and
wisdom we have acquired since our last birthday, and then we apply that
going forward.
The current situation of my possible move has
motivated me to really start a deep house cleaning so that if and when I
need to move, I am only taking with me what I really want and need, and
also rediscovering things that it would be good for me to either use
again, discard, give away or learn from again.
Staying calm, staying present, we are able to enjoy each day and able to make the best of every opportunity in life.
Enjoy
the playful spirit of the Summer Solstice this coming Monday. Savor the
beauty of the longest day of sunlight in the year, and celebrate in
whatever way you feel best.
We
have all heard of that expression "one day at a time." I am getting an
exercise in that right now as I continue to live where I live without a
lease and without knowing what will happen until someone buys the
property and announces their intentions. So each day I get up and give
thanks for the opportunity to live here and for having another day of
life. Whether I get to stay or have to move will be a decision that is
out of my hands at this time. I appreciate each day for what it is and I
do what I need to do every day.
It takes a lot of courage to
trust that things will work out without knowing the answers to all our
questions. It also takes a lot of courage to be open to possible
developments that we had not anticipated. Actually, doing some research
now is revealing some patterns that I had only been vaguely aware of
before. At this moment I am keeping those discoveries to myself until I
see how they all add up and how they may influence future choices.
Suffice it to say that I am making discoveries because these factors are
causing me to research and reconsider what I know and what I prefer.
Face
it, it can be unnerving when we have a plan and it unfolds in a
different manner than we expected because it took a different turn.
We
all like it when things go according to our plans. But sometimes, it
just happens that someone else makes a decision or takes an action that
sets in motion a chain of events and next thing you know, your
schedule has changed and your plans have changed.
Be patient. The changes work out just fine. Just like that old saying about when one door closes and another opens.
Sometimes
we gain control when we lose control. Here is a simple example of a
fun way to experience this. I used to lead drumming circles and still
use the drums with people who want a different kind of meditation
experience. By just listening and following what we hear, we feel the
music and our minds are just following that track. Malidoma Some, an
African drummer and shaman whom I had the pleasure of encountering says
that "a person who has trouble with drumming has trouble with
listening."
Consider that for a moment. When we become more
aware and pay attention to the signs we pick up from all around us, we
find new paths. We learn melodies that we did not know. Fresh thoughts
come to us. And we learn to work with others more beautifully, more
harmoniously. We play together, listening to each other, we find a
groove and that frees our mind to travel. And we would never have
discovered those paths had we not opened our ears to listen.
So
you are not drumming, you say? All drumming comes back to the first
drum, our heartbeat, our breath. As we are more observant and aware of
our surroundings, we perceive in ways that were once not visible to us.
Hidden in plain sight is also revealed by listening to things that we
have not been tuning into before.
It's also interesting how
sometimes pieces of information come to us that help us make decisions
that we were not even searching for. Guess all you can say is that the
guiding influences in our life must have intended for us to have those,
whether we call those guiding influences God, Goddess, spirit guides,
ancestors, angels or something else. So here we are. Once again making a
decision that veers off our original course. Is that bad? No. Making
changes often leads to finding a better way to do things.
If we
allow things to come to us, they will. Sometimes not being certain will
get us where we want to be, except that the process of discovery reveals
that we are in a place that we did not know we wanted to be but it is
working out well although it was unexpected.
And we can gain control by losing control.
*
A note about the photos. The image on top is the 4 of Wands from Ciro
Marchetti's Tarot of Dreams which is one of the decks I read with all
the time. The bottom photo is Layne Redmond, one of my teachers in the
world of drumming.
