Mondays are becoming my pause. Not the entire day. Just during part of it. I GET to adventure inward. Sometimes it feels good. Sometimes it doesn't. It's pretty interesting just to feel though... to really feel. I've been watching this TV show titled "Alone." It's all about survivalists going out into the wild and attempting to be the last person standing for a cash prize. What I find fascinating is how many of them are confronted with feelings that bubble up to the surface... sometimes feelings they didn't even know they had. With all the distractions and busyness stripped away, they are able to feel. Weeks, though they are only 7 days long, can be quite long and full sometimes. We cram so much into a day, and even over the course of 24 hours, it can be rather easy to get a bit lost. So 7 days can leave us feeling quite off course. Maybe we all need a day to calibrate... to find our direction again. Maybe we need a day to feel what we otherwise push aside, ignore and sometimes bury. What aren't you feeling? You know that question you get asked a million times a day but never truthfully answer, "How are you doing?" How is your job? How is school? How is your marriage? How is your family? How are your friends? How is life? What is hiding just beneath the surface of yourself and your life? What are you not feeling that would rush to the surface if you would just pause? Some Mondays I feel aches and pains rise up. I sense a need for rest. My body begins telling me that I haven't been doing such a good job taking care of it. This Monday, today, I just feel slightly off. I'm having a To-Do List repeatedly flood my attention... though I know it can wait. The longer I sit with the relentless list, I recognize that just underneath it I feel some hint of failure and regret. The list wants me to shove those feelings to the side and to just get busy doing... not being. Other Mondays I revel in a sense of accomplishment. I'm able to sit and relax and smile and enjoy. I love those Mondays. : ) Most Mondays I just remind myself of what I value... what my sparks joy in my heart and my life. I find myself just needing to remember that which matters most to me... what I truly care about so I can set off toward that direction... my True North. I hope you pause this week. I hope you feel what's hidden, buried or been ignored. I hope you remember what is most true of yourself. May you adventure inward and live toward your True North. Happy Monday : )
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In the past few weeks, I was able to help 2 couples who's wedding plans had been drastically interrupted (notice I didn't say "ruined") by the recent hurricanes.
Listening to their stories and seeing their tears brought me depth, meaning and insight I personally didn't see coming. I thought I was doing the good thing, yet they were offering me even MORE. I am now convinced that the illusion of control often prevents us from experiencing the true gift that life is. When Plan B or even Plan X becomes the path before us, we get hung up on what didn't happen and how things didn't go according to "the plan." These 2 couples were quite the opposite. They certainly grieved the loss they felt... but that loss led to another path, another plan which was still their story and it was full of life and love. Their weddings weren't ruined at all! To see them embrace the unexpected interruption in their lives made me take a hard look at how I experience life... whether or not I continually receive it as the gift it truly is. : ) My hope for all of us today: SURRENDER THE OUTCOME. Back in middle school, I was slimed by my best friend's high school brother during a game of basketball. Near the end of a pretty heated game, he full-body fouled me with his sweaty, smelly body... and yes, he was on the "skins" team. I could barely open my eyes because of what covered them. It was on lips. Up my nose. It was everywhere... and it was NASTY!
We all leave something behind... some sort of RESIDUE in our absence. In fact, I would argue that we want to leave something behind... that it is a part of our human condition. We have an impulse to mark things, impart things, pass on things, and impact the world. From gum under chairs and initials on trees, to branded empires and family riches, we WANT to leave something behind. Every encounter. Every word. Every look. What do you leave behind? What spills out of you and onto others? Do people take notice? I hope they do. And I hope they want more of what you're full of. We all know that we can be full of some pretty choice words. : ) We all know that the opposite is also true. There are so many people in my life that leave love behind. I can literally feel it when they go. It's almost as if I can even smell them coming. And truth be told, I'd rather be drenched in love than almost anything nowadays. You have an amazing role in our shared story... how you live, what you create...
you existing as a human being is nothing short of a miracle. You possess the ability to inspire, spark and create life... your potential is truly endless... We talked about it.
We all thought about it. We created bracelets, key chains, anklets and tokens with ONE word on them. ONE word to... INSPIRE, NUDGE, CHALLENGE, ENCOURAGE, REMIND and CNETER us. Then we took to the streets. Armed with smiles, thought provoking questions we invited others to think of ONE word. Then we made bracelets, key chains, anklets and tokens with their ONE word on them. After one month and hundreds words... these are the interesting results. The larger the word, the more times it occurred. Enjoy! dang. it's been awhile.
but here we go again... imagine how much a seed needs to grow and thrive. soil, sun, water, shade, protection from weeds. all so that life happens. At the last MTL gathering, I told part of a story that I forgot to finish. So I’d like to finish it now. Actually, let me back up and tell the entire thing so we are all on the same page…
I used to take students to lots of concerts because I absolutely love music. We would drive a big suburban down from Breckenridge to Denver then back up the mountain again afterwards. Because of the gas-guzzling ride, I always asked students to bring $5 to help offset the fuel bill. On one particular occasion, we parked the car and on our way walking to the concert, we were approached by a mother and daughter. They explained how they had been kicked out of their place for not paying rent and how just a week earlier, the mom had lost her job. They clearly had everything they owned with them and were asking us for help… anything we could spare. All the students immediately looked at me to see how I was going to respond. Here’s what I said, “Unfortunately, I don’t have any cash on me (I truly didn’t), but I know these students have some they owe me for gas, and they can decide what to do with it.” Then I walked away and watched things play out. In the end, the students talked it over and decided to split the gas money in half- giving some to me and the rest to the mother and daughter. On the way home from the concert, I listened in on their discussion about the entire experience. Much of what they said I honestly expected to hear… I expected it because we all tend to think in similar ways… What if they do this all the time? Was it a trick? Were they really in trouble? What if bad decisions, not a lost job, got them kicked out? Will they even use the money in a good way? Many times I tend to think in ways that simply justify my inaction… when my heart wants me to respond somehow… compassion should compel us to action. Remember, SEE. FEEL. ACT. SEE your fellow human beings and their situation. FEEL their suffering, and take it into your heart. ACT… how can you acknowledge their humanity, embrace their suffering and help??? Tap into the compassion that flows inside of you and SEE, FEEL, ACT. |
These posts offer further reflection on topics we tackle during MTL nights.
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