A few days ago, one of my teachers and mentors said to me: “Remember, we are all just walking each other home (Ram Dass). This is it. There may not be another day of sunshine. And remember you are spirit in a human sleeve.”
There is comfort in being able to rest in the moment and to appreciate what is present.
“What is the purpose of life when you are hanging out by yourself all day?” asked my grandma today. She’s 97 and has seen a lot in her life. I said maybe it is finding the joy in all the little things around us, the next breath, the little butterfly passing by at the window, the beauty of the chain of words in a poem, in finding something to chuckle at.
I do hear her so well on loneliness, and I experience it myself as well, and I remind myself that we come into this world by ourselves, and we leave by ourselves, connected to everything in life in spirit, yet in our own physical body. The more we can feel that connection to everything, the more we know we are home in this very moment.
While there is comfort in being able to rest in the moment, at the same time, there is a very active thought in my mind about how to move towards the future I desire. Some things I move forward fairly well, on others I feel like I am off and/or behind. Another one of my other teachers said yesterday: “When we get thrown off, that means our vision isn’t strong enough.”
This is my life, and it is my responsibility to create my vision. It can be a scary thought, and yet it is empowering. I ask myself: “Where are my blind spots?” Where am I contributing to what’s not working? Where am I not taking responsibility? And that takes humility to look at. Breakdown can lead to breakthrough if we let it.
We can practice feeling good or feeling bad – and whatever we practice, we get good at. It takes the same amount of energy to live in fear as it takes to live in joy, so can you flip the switch? Let’s use our imagination in the way that serves us better, by imagining the good that could happen instead of the bad that could happen.
Can you give yourself permission to feel good right this moment? Whatever is going on, can you decide if it gets to have power over your emotional state? Can you choose to feel what you want to align with for your future?