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Some days are better than others, that’s true. But on those days when something in me is screaming, “I doan wanna,” I gotta wonder.
Is this something I need to listen to? Or is it just the child in me exercising her rebellious nature? Okay, maybe I’m weary and need to rest. This thing I’m asking myself might just be one too many.
But, that’s not how it is, I say, “I can do this. I want to do this!” Wouldn’t it be cool if I could get out my Willingness bottle and spray it on? As soon as it seeps in, I would be fully willing to do it. (Even if there were some boundaries, I’d be willing to make my way over them.)
Let’s say I’m tired. The perfume of willingness would allow me to do some, anyway. Try it for 10 or 15 minutes. If it still isn’t flowing, take some notes and schedule another time. But I would feel better if I did something . . . anything.
Perhaps I could whip up an infusion of Willingness. Paulette Terrels’ 30 second break might help:
1. Stop what I’m doing and relax my shoulders.
2. Take two easy, cleansing breaths.
3. Do the Thich Nhat Hanh chant 3 times –
“Breathing in I calm my body, breathing out I smile, dwelling in this present moment I know it is a wonderful moment.”
On the first breath, I think about how happy I am that I can do this simple tactic.
On the second breath, I put on a big smile so I can feel it.
On the third breath I think of something that makes me feel really good so I can smile deeply. Refreshed and renewed, and I hope, more willing to take on what’s in front of me.
This spray-on Will would also help to reveal the fun. With the softer vision of willingness, the fun can shine through!
Another tactic might be to use momentum energy. Keep it going to fuel the fires and keep the home fires burning. If used correctly, the spray could become irrelevant.
Julia Cameron says, though, that you are better motivated by inspiration and excitement, rather than will. Still it couldn’t hurt to dab a bit behind your ears when you need a little boost.
He glanced over at the book shelf. At last. The sun’s rays reached the top of the shelf. It was nearly time now. Time for him to face his future. It had been a long time in coming.
As he stood he felt his stiff muscles give way, his bones shift into place with a crackle. He had sat motionless for hours staring into space. He took in a slow breath, expanding his chest. Was he ready? He felt the panic rise inside of him again. He wondered if he hadn’t spent his entire life experiencing varying degrees of that panic. It had been with him for as long as he could remember.
How many times had he gone over this in the last 8 hours? All his life he thought there had to be something more. Now, he finally knew what he had to do to find out.
He flashed back to that night, five years ago, or was it more like 10 now? It was the night of the big thunderstorm. He and Gretchen were holed up in the cabin in the woods behind the old lumber company. Could it have started that long ago? The panic tickled his throat.
They had finished dinner, using up the last of the truffles in a perfectly prepared risotto. How he had sweated over that meal, worried he would mess it up or the storm would cut the power. In the end, it was the best damn risotto he’d ever made. Afterwards they made love. It was later, in the darkness and quiet when he first heard the voice. The voice had told him there would come a day when he would know what he must do.
At the time it had frightened him so much, Gretchen thought he was having another one of his nightmares. Over the last 10 years, he had struggled to pretend it was nothing more than a dream. Until last night. When it all came back.
He walked to the bookcase and withdrew the first edition of “Dante’s Inferno.” He opened the book, carefully leafing to page 132, as the voice had instructed. He was shaking and sweaty. The dust from the long closed pages tickled his nose and he sneezed. The book flew out of his hand, landing on the top of the book shelf, the sun illuminating page 132. He slid the book back into his hands and began reading.
It occurred to him that there was nothing particularly special about the passage he was reading. When, silently, the roof raised above him. Before he knew it, he was flying over the trees, lifting higher and higher. He couldn’t believe how free he felt, lifting and then floating and soaring again. It was a tremendous feeling!
As he flew above the light and into the darkness of space, the visions began. The images went by quickly. Flashes of light and dark. Shapes that seemed to have relevance which he couldn’t grasp. He started to feel dizzy and unsteady, panic reminding him it was still with him. The familiar nausea bubbled as the colors grew more vivid. He was just starting to make out some of the shapes . . . people he thought he had known once upon a time. Then it all went black. He was falling faster and faster until he landed softly on the most comfortable bed he had ever felt. He was home. The panic left far behind. There was a big smile on his face and he couldn’t help but laugh.
There seems to be a lot of talk I’m hearing these days about creating your life, pursuing your dream, getting what you want. I’m all for that. I believe, deeply, that we create our own lives. But maybe it’s just too easy to get caught up in what I want.
In Susan Jeffer’s newsletter this month, she talks about Instant Angels – those blessed souls who show up just when you need them. She went on to explain that we can all be Instant Angels for someone else, too. If we pay attention to others, we can spot ways we can come to someone’s rescue.
What a fun way to live life! Thinking about yourself, obsessing on your thoughts, while beneficial, can get decidedly boring. Maybe we can plant some thoughts like all is well, I have all I need and get on with it. Alan Cohen sent me this quote from Lao Tzu, “Be content with what you have, rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”
Now, that’s some good marching orders for being an Instant Angel! Imagine how you would feel if the world belonged to you. There’s nothing you couldn’t do for others.
We all have so much to give. Whether or not we have money, we’re likely to have some time. There’s no shortage of imagination and ideas, a kind word, a voice to motivate. So many ways to help others! A hand, an ear, a smile.
I just love this Instant Angel concept. It only takes an instant to decide to help someone. And it may only take a moment to deliver that help. I’m not sure if I really believe this, but I heard a story that someone was feeling lost and unloved, when a stranger gave them a warm and loving smile. It completely changed their attitude and made them rethink their negative thoughts. It turned their whole world around. How wonderful is that! You could change someone’s life simply by smiling at them.
Maybe we can play with one of Agent Cooper’s rules. He says that every day you should give yourself a gift, unplanned. Let’s shift that to giving a gift to someone else every day, unplanned. It needn’t be wrapped in fancy paper, just a moment’s awareness will do.
The Positive Slant On the Path 