Kind Reader:
I've done some soul searching to see what it is I'd really like to place in the heart of 2016. Perhaps you'd like to do the same. When we focus on the heart of the matter, my experience is all else falls into place. One way to find the heart is to notice what it is in your life that has not been feeling so fulfilling anymore. Another way is to look at what you truly long for. Way deep down, past the noise, the clutter and the “to do” list, what is it that you genuinely desire?
Perhaps these questions are not easy, but they certainly do offer a way to give more meaning to your life. I've come upon my themes organically. The last two-three years I have been experiencing a variety of health concerns. Prior to this time, my health was robust and I identified myself as “woman who has great health”. Since this is no longer true, I've begun identifying myself as “woman who has poor health.” These two identifications and dualities have caused much unrest and self- criticism. Even the so-called positive identification sets up failure by making great health better than not-so-great-health. I am, and you are, so much more than whatever is going on with the body.
I can see I am not really either of these women, the one with the “great” health, or the one with the “poor” health; who I truly am is a Sweet Old Soul. My true self is the One who holds the space for my heartbreaking humanity and my divinity. And, so are you, whether you know it or not. Either way, what my body is or isn't does not detract from my Presence.
So, my first theme this year is resiliency. I'd like to create this way of looking at my health that includes a deep desire to take care of myself on every level. I'd like to stop orienting around the “poor health” theme and step into the creativity of being with my body as a part of “The Beloved.” I'm excited about all the ideas I've come up with to hold HEALTH RESILIENCY in the heart of my life this year.
Resiliency is defined as ability to recover readily from illness, depression, adversity or the like; returning to the original form. My own personal definition of health resiliency isn't really that I return to the woman I was before the health issues, but rather that I take every step imaginable to recover while at the same time being entirely willing to live alongside physical challenges. I want to meet them with courage and compassion and then allow healing to take place spiritually and emotionally. Whether my physical body improves or heals is in the hands of the Great Mystery.
The second theme that's made itself clear in me is “voluntary simplicity.” While I don't want to retire, as I love the soul work I do with folks, I do want to simplify. I want to keep my hours easy and the time I spend with clients to be rich with depth, laughter and tears. I want the hours I spend in my life's work to be a sanctuary for me and for each person I work with as we effortlessly move into a more deliberate and conscious way of living all aspects of our lives.
I want to live even more from my essence or core and I want to pass that on to those I touch. I want to be more intimately connected to the people, places and things that matter most to me. I want to pause frequently to ask the question, "what is it that I want to do with the remaining wild and precious days of my life?”
“Voluntary Simplicity” by Duane Elgin says that simplicity is choosing to moderate material wants and redirect activities so that we live with an ever-increasing lightness of being. I want to do what I can to move busyness to beingness. I'm looking forward to de-cluttering the closets, simplifying our finances, and looking for ways to make my life smaller but more connected.
We leave tomorrow for Arizona to spend the last days of the year with a dear friend and pick up our new puppy from his “Doggie Boot Camp Training.” While we travel, we'll be listening to some tapes called “Your Money or Your Life,” by Joe Dominguez. Joe's primary message was to make the quality of your life, your values and your relationships more important than accumulating more stuff or climbing any more ladders. This will be a great way to get the themes off the ground.
In the first quarter of 2016, I'm intending to use both blogs and newsletters to reflect further on resiliency and simplicity. I hope these themes are meaningful to you, dear reader, or that it's easy enough to plug in your own themes and get value out of the material I offer.
Thank you for your sweet listening hearts this past year,
Patricia
“I want to live deep and suck all the marrow out of life.”
Henry David Thoreau
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