Think Christmas Eve night. Like when you were young.
Our lives start to create their own rhythmic and melodious whimsy when we start to design our upcoming days.
When is the last time you got up without the help of an alarm?
Dreaming of what you want to unwrap tomorrow can help here.
…it’s probably easy to not do as well.
We’ve heard an apple a day for so long that it’s become, unfortunately, a humdrum old wives tale.
But what if you swapped out the apple for something else?
A thank you a day.
A no thank you a day.
A walk a day.
A journal entry a day.
A prayer a day.
And so forth.
Success sounds eerily familiar to failure…drip drip.
…find.
Not wander. Not stumble upon. The ancient scripture simply states you will find.
Let us be people of great questions, and in doing so, become even better seekers for what we are all truly after.
You may just be your own best form of Google.
Ingredients:
A lot of art.
A dash of change here and there.
A dose of courage.
Bits and pieces of bravery.
Strain in the cherished memories and lessons learned of the past.
Layer in context over content.
A handful of diced disciplines.
A scoop of melted generosity.
Sift in enough fear to know it’s there, but not enough to overwhelm the taste.
Add whimsy to liking. (Use more than you think you need)
Directions:
Take your time.
Stir until soupy.
Let simmer while you take a long walk.
Enjoy with gratitude and pause long enough to savor the flavor.
Suggestions:
Goes well with life, relationships, and business.
My daughter is in a season of deciphering “real” from “pretend.” For her, this leads to a lot of questions about The Little Mermaid and the purple lady, wondering about Facetime, playing real kitchen with pretend food, etc.
Fast forward 30 years, and I’m afraid these questions and scenarios haven’t left me either. Nevertheless, this isn’t dress up – this is happening – this is real. This simple realization, and hopefully a constant reminder, is enough to walk into, with, and out in love throughout our days with all that we do.
When you’re present with your moments, not only do you open yourself to be in love with an idea of something, but you also learn to romance yourself with the processes and laws of nature required of that particular something. You’ll love the flower and you’ll take pleasure in gardening. You’ll love the music and you’ll enjoy learning and honing the instruments. You’ll love the poem and you’ll appreciate the emotions. You’ll love the game and you’ll look forward to practice. You’ll love being a mom or dad and you’ll savor parenting. Our ideas and things we dream about turn to (or stay) pretend when we avoid the gardening, the learning of instruments, the emotions, the practice, the parenting, and so forth.
In the end, when you run from the processes and laws of nature, you will be running straight into the land of ‘pretend’ all the while thinking to yourself “are we there yet?”.
Iris Murdoch once wrote, “Love is the very difficult understand that something other than yourself is real.”
Like I said, my daughter is in a season of deciphering “real” from “pretend.” So am I.
Ashton.Gustafson 