I’m so happy many of you got something out of my post last week exploring my discovery of how often my mind, emotions and body are braced against this or that. I’m still looking at it deeply. I have discovered much.
Often, after I write something, I ask my partner, Steve, if I can read it to him out loud so that I can hear how it sounds, catch typos, change words here and there. It’s just helpful.
After I did so last weekend, he said, next week why don’t you explore the idea of ‘EMbracing’. I took him up on his suggestion.
Embracing What?
I’m challenged in a few ways right now that are inviting me to grow in interesting ways. Besides working on my health, I’ve been looking at one primary question…
“What on earth do I do with myself now?”
After giving my financial education business away almost two years ago, I’m confronted with the luxury of being able to do pretty much whatever I want with my days. And while I have created a few responsibilities for myself (21 chickens for starters LOL), I really do have a blank slate to create upon.
The thing is, I currently don’t have anything that is truly ‘calling me forward’ as Steve likes to say.
Oh sure, there are things that I think are interesting…
Finally learning how to play the guitar (I have a couple of lessons planned so we’ll see how that goes).
Learn how to paint (I putter around with this often and am drawn to it in a big way but so far not terribly inspired toward real action…yet).
I have several business ideas that are intriguing, including my I Live Here Wear idea (website isn’t finished) which I love in lots of ways, and there’s always all of the financial education books I have already written that just need more marketing (I’m the creator girl, not the marketing girl…ug).
Putting together and marketing a Carnivore Cruise (I think this would be a hoot).
And there are other ideas that come up to the surface now and again, percolate for a bit in my brain and then seep back down in the under regions of my psyche.
However, more and more these days, I’m noticing a different calling.
Have you ever noticed during your lifetime that you’re actually looking for a different WAY of life? Not just a different place to live or work or different things to do or experience…but a completely different WAY of living. I’m not even sure I know exactly what I mean by this yet.
I suppose now is as good as any for exploring this. I mean if you don’t know by now, us girls brings things to the surface and sort them out best when we talk about them…maybe writing will do the same thing. So, hang on for a bit while I dig around here in my spirit.
Fiji Days
One of the recurring themes is something I refer to as having a ‘Fiji Day’. A dear friend, Mike, years ago took me to two islands in Fiji and we had a great time. We’ve been super great friends for over 30 years and we have a lot of fun playing via text almost daily as he still lives in Santa Barbara and I live up here in Montana
When I got back from our little trip so many years ago, I realized I was somehow taken with the way of life I witnessed. I started to get up in the morning once in a while with this certain feeling and it came out as wanting to have a ‘Fiji Day’ and what I meant by that was that I felt like I wanted to go back to Fiji, or somewhere similar, and get a job selling umbrella drinks to tourists who were there to have fun.
The older I get here in the US, the more I notice this intensity that I’m not drawn to in the slightest anymore. I certainly notice myself being sucked into it but almost daily, I spend some thinking time on the idea that somewhere there is this ‘place’ where people are relaxed, have fun, work hard (or not), help each other, play with each other, don’t stare into devices all day and well, just have a sense of peace and calm about them that radiates throughout the entire environment, be it a village, town, city, etc.
Back to Embracing
As I allow this sensation of desire for a simple, calm, pure, authentic, connected experience, what I realize is that the concept of embracing might not be what I’m looking for either.
Embracing, to me, includes this sense of ‘holding on to’ and while I know I don’t want to ‘brace against’, I also don’t necessarily want to ‘hold on to’ either. It’s more like a ‘letting go of’ that I’m craving.
I suppose I could embrace my exploration into what it is that I really want now because one thing that I truly know without a shadow of a doubt is that I always get what it is I REALLY want.
Now to just figure that out…
More next week!
I wish for you a day of noticing what you’re bracing against, embracing and wanting to let go of. Please share with me what you’re noticing. I want to know!
I offer you presence in all things. Thanks for being here…I appreciate you.
Elisabeth…
My personal philosophy…“I question therefore I am.”
Ohhhh what I’m bracing against...a great thing to ponder. Thank you ❤️