A dose of dauntlessly dealt reality from the What It Is Wednesday Blog Carnival…
About this time last year, I blogged about my ridiculous luxury of meeting with a great group of mystics monthly for the last 13-14 years. In the last year health and work have complicated my ability to do so, though I aspire to get back to our regular date.
One of the bajillion things I’ve gained from these amazing people is the refined focus of setting themes for myself, every year. Over fried green tomatoes and rutabagas we’d discuss what our theme would be, and how we could live into it, maybe help each other to do just that. As nothing in my life happens that isn’t written down, I have thirteen years of trackable personal themes. Yesterday we discussed our themes for 2018.
Needless to say, these themes are always challenging. Choosing them isn’t Wishlist territory. They’re not things I wish I could master, but challenges appropriate to What Truly Comes Next in my personal growth. While they aren’t total shoe-ins for success, they also aren’t Mount Everest. They are challenges appropriate to life, in the moment. In other words, settling on the right one requires brutal self-honesty.
In the past, my themes have been along the lines of, “Recognize Patterns,” “Find a Better Feeling,” Appeal to the True Self.” They always had an active component of me making strides toward some change to better a condition, state, or dynamic in my life. And to be honest, I did it. It worked. I’m a doer.
I was a doer. I’m now sort-of-a-doer.
Over the last two years of health complications and the organ failure and subsequent two surgeries of this year, I’ve had to re-evaluate everything from life dreams and carrying out soul commitments, to how to earn a living and show up on the planet as a woke person. In short: it’s all changed.
So, without further preamble, my Personal Theme for 2018 is “Bear Better.” I’ve been bearing, and I’ve honestly done the best I could with it. I’ve remained awake and active throughout all of it. A great deal of my life at this point is focused on tending, and the best I can ask for isn’t miracles or even minor change, but to bear it better. Whatever appears on the plate, I seek the resources–spiritual, emotional, mental, physical–to call in the resources, guides, wisdom–what-the-hell-ever, to bear it better.
I can’t categorically say the optimism of my youth to be the active principle and seek to change the source of discomfort is completely gone. It’s now more of an instinct that is a factor among many in deciding how to actually be. What’s more accurate though, is I’ve reached middle age. I’ve reached the point that I know what I can change and what I can’t. I still have energy to expend. I still have a family to show up for, a planet to be an intentional citizen of, and a life to live such that I feel worth as a person. The difference now is I know what my boundaries are, I’ve learned how to say no, and I give one shit less about the small stuff, every day.
What’s your Personal Theme for 2018? How can you show up for yourself to live it?
As always, thank you for what you do. Thanks for showing up. I wish you the best and brightest 2018.
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