Birthday time!
I just turned...
older.
And perhaps a little wiser.
To prove the wiser part to myself, I decided to try to identify a few life lessons I learned this year. Here it goes, in no particular order, unless you count the order that they popped into my disorganized brain. Random order, then.
1. It might be fun for a time to reinvent yourself, but after a time, it is disorienting and a lot of work. It always comes back to authenticity. I just have to be myself. This doesn't mean being stuck and static. Learning, growing and adapting are good, but it's no good to try to change who I am. There are all kinds of way to be, but as a wise yoga teacher said in class the other week, "Be virtuosic at being you." Yes to that.
2. It takes a village. I love my solitude, but isolation is, well, isolating. Connection is vital and healthy. Connections as simple as smiling at a stranger can be nourishing to the soul.
3. Environment is important. For whatever reason, the vibe of where I spend my time, makes a huge difference in my mood. I could probably be very happy doing almost anything for a living if I were in a beautiful place. I am lucky though- I love doing bodywork and both my spaces are beautiful, so I don't have to chose between beauty and doing what I love. My home office is magical. One Life Chiropractic is just beautiful. I dare you to walk in the waiting room and not get an immediate sense of calm. I am so happy that my clients have a choice- some prefer a homey atmosphere. A professional atmosphere with a comfortable waiting room will work better for other clients.
4. Being careful with money is important, but sometimes you just have to spend some dough. When I realized that it was taking me 20 minutes to do what could be done on a friend's new computer in less than one minute, and if time is indeed money, I was losing all kinds of it working on my very cute, but very out of date mac. New mac in hand....simple computering is indeed simple now- the way it should be. I can finally catch up on all that I need to do, simple stuff and sophisticated alike- and not spend my day looking at that spinning pinwheel that indicates that my computer is trying as hard as she can to climb that hill, "I think I can....I think I can....I think I can...."
5. I alone am in control of my happiness. As soon as I link my happiness to something external- I am in big trouble. I can't really control anything outside myself. It is hard enough control my own thoughts, but it seems key. What is watered grows. A brain can be changed. My gratitude practice has shown me that focusing on the wonder of life can indeed make for a more wonderful life. And for that, I am very grateful.
Five seems like a good number. If I stayed at the computer longer, I could probably go on and on. That is the nature of lessons- they are opportunistic and insistent. They just keep showing up. This is something for which I am also grateful Very grateful.
Wishing you balance,
Nancy
