"Why is it that when something bad happens, it feels terrible? I have been so conditioned to strive for success that when something goes wrong I feel terrible and I feel like a failure. But usually in time, after I get over myself, that failure turns into a valuable lesson. Of course to get to this point it normally takes time and perspective to see it as the lesson it is instead of the failure that it feels like. I truly believe that if I could remember this at the time I could get to the lesson sooner instead of dwelling on the failure and spend more of my time in joy. At these times this lesson serves me well, there is no such thing as failure, only feedback. My failure is only a failure if I fail to see the feedback, to take the lesson and apply it so that it is only a step on the way to eventual success, even if that success looks very different than what my original vision might have been. Funny how limited my vision can be without the valuable feedback I need to see my success a different way." Thanks to Sheryl Cattell (a UU-church friend as well as music buddy), Personal Legend Coaching, LLC
I've had this prepared, with every intention (see what I did there!) of uploading it January 1, 2021... but, due to circumstances discussed in a previous post, I had a bit of a delay... 😲
In her December 28, 2007 blog, Resolution Revolution: A Better Way to Start Your Year, Christine Kane writes (click the link for the full article): Several years ago, my friend Kathy and I decided that, instead of making resolutions, we would pick a word that would guide us throughout the year. It would be our touchstone. It would remind us of living our lives at the BE level.
I have been choosing a Word of the Year since January 2008, to challenge/motivate/inspire me. In retrospect, some of my previous words/phrases have been Release, Create, Let It Go, Health, Light, Follow-Through, Contentment (wish I could remember them all, which I posted on Facebook when my blog was on hiatus, and now they are lost in cyberspace). Oh well... [insert shrugging woman emoji here]
We all know 2020 was a sh*t show… and I confess it’s been a test of time management, focus/concentration and interpersonal relationships. I want to put those twelve months behind me… as a cautionary tale, a growth opportunity, and a rearview mirror experience (while still recognizing the desire to do things differently should the same opportunity present itself again). 2021: Time to move FORWARD, in all its many definitions:
~ in the direction that one is facing or traveling; toward the front.
~ into a position of prominence or notice.
~ toward the future; ahead in time.
~ moving or tending onward to a successful conclusion.
~ developing or acting earlier than expected or required; advanced or precocious.
~ (of a person) bold or familiar in manner, especially in a presumptuous way.
~ help to advance (something); promote.
I have appreciated the patience and understanding of loved ones in my life as I navigate(d) my way through some rough patches and, since I always want to view everything as a life lesson, I feel I have learned much, despite these crazy pandemic times... and still have much *to* learn. Forward indeed... 💖
Happy New Year! (albeit a week or so late... 😍 )
SONG: Upside Down by Jack Johnson [During my renewed walking routine since mid-October, this song kept popping up on my Pandora. I always scoffed at Jack Johnson's tunes, thinking them fluffy and superficial (I mean, seriously... Banana Pancakes?!?). Somehow this one got through, it makes me smile every time I hear it... and, although it already speaks to me, I want my life in general to be (more) like this. Impossible, of course, but a [wo]man's reach should exceed her grasp, right?... 💗 ]
POEM: Two Bodies by Octavio Paz
Two bodies face to face
Are at times two waves
And the night is an ocean.
Two bodies face to face
Are sometimes two stones
And the night a desert.
Two bodies face to face
Are at times two roots
Intertwined in the night.
Two bodies face to face
Are sometimes two stilettos
And night lightening sparks.
Two bodies face to face
Are two stars who are falling
In a naked sky.
QUOTE: "Because we're doing the best we can, we really are. We're trying to be grown-up and love each other and understand how the hell you're supposed to insert USB leads. We're looking for something to cling on to, something to fight for, something to look forward to. We're doing all we can to teach our children how to swim. We have all of this in common, yet most of us remain strangers, we never know what we do to each other, how your life is affected by mine.
Perhaps we hurried past each other in a crowd today, and neither of us noticed, and the fibers of your coat brushed against mine for single moment and then we were gone. I don't know who you are.
But when you get home this evening, when this day is over and the night takes us, allow yourself a deep breath. Because we made it through this day as well.
There'll be another one along tomorrow." ~ Fredrik Backman, from his novel Anxious People
No comments:
Post a Comment