Listening To My Life

Eureka

This is it. This is the heart of the heart of the core of the core of what I'm doing with my life.

You know I don't believe in coincidence. And you know (if you know how Quogr works) that I put that quotation into the rotation on my blog. But it popped up today exactly when I needed to see it and could be most open to it.

The interesting thing that also beaned me in the head is that I that I attract soooooo many coaching clients who, at the bottom line, do nothing more than walk through their lives, making the most (and easily) of the situations and people they happen on to along the way. Businesses have been built that way, love has been found that way, hearts have been healed. And although I can see it clearly for them (that they're doing that), they struggle to really see it with any sort of true awareness. Too close, for sure.

Until today, until right this very moment, I couldn't see it clearly for myself, either. That's partially because I couldn't get that I, by and large, do exactly that, and partially because I've believed that, for me, it (everything) has to be harder. Harder to do, harder to get to, harder won, just harder. But it's been there, obviously, given that I thought enough to add that specific quotation to the rotation.

There really is nothing else to do but learn who I am...and share that with others. That's it. That's the whole of it. So, when R got me to admit that when asked what I do (professionally), I should say, "I work on enjoying my life," she was pretty darn close. I think that needs refining, and I'll work on that. It's no coincidence that in David Neagle's Art of Success he ended the first of the four teleclasses instructing us to go off and focus on what we want, and why we want it. For me, it all feels infinitely tied together. I feel as though I'm about to be given some really huge gift, and it's just going to take me a bit of time to get through the ribbon and wrapping paper to get into the box to see it. It's exciting, frustrating, and a bit scary (just a teensy bit).

More as I hear it....

The road less traveled

I’m a road follower. A shunpiker. An “Oh, I wonder where this road leads” person. A “What happens if I turn left here" person. I am a lover of the paths I’ve not yet taken.

I think that’s something that’s a part of my soul, and maybe I would have always been wanting to go off on journeys of all kinds just to see what’s over there, but maybe not. Maybe I do it frequently and with great joy because my father taught me, when I was learning to drive, that I should take chances, and take different routes, because, in reality, I could never get lost. He said that if I just kept driving, sooner or later I’d end up somewhere that I recognized.

I took that to heart, and, making sure I have enough gas in the car so I don’t get into that kind of trouble, I often go exploring. That’s why I can detour around just about any traffic mess I stumble upon in the Baltimore metro area. That’s why I didn’t even buy a GPS until recently, and even then, LE had to let me borrow his to have me understand the beauty and the magic of GPS (in truth, now that I have it, the thing I love most is having Mistress Garmin talk to me in languages I don't speak. I've mastered "left" and "right" in about seven languages so far. lol).

Another place I explore is online. I'm one of those insatiably curious types who follows links from ads for things she's never seen before, or from blog posts, or from things in magazines or TV. And last week, one night in Vegas as D lay beside me sleeping peacefully, I did the online version of shunpiking when I read Carla's post, and found myself clicking through to her 365 Days self-portrait project on Flickr, which then led me to the rest of her photos. My goodness...it's really taken me through today to go through them all (with reading her comments).

I've always admired Carla, starting on the day at an Oprah event when I first experienced her magical candles. And, in truth, her blog, her style of writing, and her voice are what led me toward starting Listening To My Life. Today, I can say with great certainty that I have a whole new level of respect and admiration for her, and add to the list of things I'm in awe of, her ability as a photographer.

And that's the best thing that shunpiking (in all it's varieties) offers--something fresh and different that would have never been seen or experienced on the main roads. Thank God for adventures and the untold joys they bring!

The human spirit is alive and well...

I have a new coaching client whose life story just blows me away.

Reading it, I realized that I really am probably one of only a very few people who will be able to help her move forward with any ease, and that's because of my own life story, plus the twists, turns, and amazements of my own journey.

I am humbled by the fact that, intuitively, she sensed I was this person. I am humbled by her braveness, and by her trust in me when she really has no reason to know that she will be safe with me in the way that she is.

And I'm humbled by the human spirit, in general, that allows us all to keep getting back up, keep trusting, and keep hoping--no matter the difficulties we face. I realize that not everyone can find the will to tap into that spirit, but believe all of us have it. And I'm thrilled that I'm given the chance to work with people who tap into it in their lives every day.

I am a lucky, lucky girl.

Wait...

It's not, in fact, enough.

When all is said and done, only this is truly enough:

I love you

Finding the gift

I had my first Thai massage today, and let me tell you, I'll never do another table massage again, given the choice. Yeah; it's that good.

For those who may never have heard of it, it's billed this way:

By combining massage, acupressure and yoga stretches, joints are opened, muscles and tendons stretched, internal organs toned, and vitality increased - thereby bringing about a deep state of relaxation, rejuvenation and well-being.

I'm sure all that's true (about the benes), but all I can tell you for sure is that I feel amaaaaaaaaaaazing.

While I was waiting for N (my massage therapist) in the quiet room of the lovely Ojas Wellness Center, a man came in to wait for his massage therapist. As I am given to do, I said hello, and we had a little chat.

The first thing that came up was the weather, which was, at the time, piss poor. Torrential rain, standing water, flooding...I'd gotten really wet just getting in from the car. I bemoaned my dampness to said gentleman, and then exclaimed, "I'm holding out the desire that this will have stopped by the time I'm ready to leave."

He said quietly, "You know, this could be ice and snow."

Oh. Yeah. It could.

In that second, my attitude changed completely. Trust me, snow and ice would have been baaaaad. Next to that, the rain looked actually quite good!

And although it actually was stopped before I left, I realized that somewhere along the way, I'd stopped doing something I used to practice: finding the gift in everything.

I believe that it's impossibly to be grateful and resentful at the same time. And when I'm feeling resentful (say, of getting my hair wet in the stooooopid rain), if I can find the gift in the situation, I can stop the resentment, and get back to being grateful.

Today I realized that:

*The rain is good for the earth
*The rain cuts pollution
*The rain is good for the wild animals; our water table has been so low, and they need it
*The rain is better than snow!

Thank God for the rain!! :) And thank God for putting that man in my path today to remind me to look for the gift!

We have not come to take prisoners

Via Carla, comes this amazing piece. It speaks so loudly to me on several levels--mostly with regard to my most important relationships, and the core of who I know myself to be.

Carla said she'd love to paint it on her office wall. I want to remember to paint it on my soul.

We have not come here to take prisoners,
But to surrender ever more deeply
To freedom and joy.

We have not come into this exquisite world
To hold ourselves hostage from love.

Run my dear,
From anything
That may not strengthen
Your precious budding wings.

Run like hell my dear,
From anyone likely
To put a sharp knife
Into the sacred, tender vision
Of your beautiful heart.

We have a duty to befriend
Those aspects of obedience
That stand outside of our house
And shout to our reason
"O please, O please,
Come out and play."

For we have not come here to take prisoners
Or to confine our wondrous spirits,

But to experience ever and ever more deeply
Our divine courage, freedom and
Light.

~Hafiz

Random thoughts on the sacred

The sacred...to me, it's in all of us, all the time. It's in every blade of grass--every grain of sand. The sacred isn't tied to religion, although I suspect most people think of it in that light. It is tied to seeing the divine everywhere.

Being a spiritual girl, but not religious, I ally with no particular church or faith, yet see beauty, and the sacred in all faiths and teachings.

I want to practice everyday sacredness, in part because I think the world moves too fast, and too much is lost while we're living at the speed of the microchip. Being awake and aware of the sacred in everything will cause me to slow down, experience life more fully, be more present, awake and aware, and more centered and content.

Love, gratitude, grace, compassion, joy, peace...all sacred and qualities/conditions worth aspiring to. The profane, on the other hand--fear, greed, gossip, hate...all qualities/conditions I prefer to stay away from.

Prayer is sacred. So is meditation. I want to do more of both. In fact, I want to do anything that brings me closer to my own divinity, and to then radiate that out to the world.

This blog will be about my journey, as I listen to my life....and my thoughts (which often inform my journey).