Day 311/366 days Towards Self-Mastery.
It's easy to go to work each day and to do what is expected of you. As long as you can read the job description and follow instructions you can do what needs to be done. Day in and day out you take the same bus, the same route, the same job, the same breaks, the same instructions and you do it all well.
You follow the plan that you have for your life. A plan that is meticulous in its detail and its simplicity because, who plans for their future to be difficult?
And then the unexpected happens. Your plans are thrown into chaos. An earthquake damages your home, a storm sends water through your livelihood, a share market crash consumes your investments, a child becomes unwell, a parent needs support.
A pandemic comes along and your future plans don't look so achievable anymore. Perhaps you have lost your job, your bills are piling up, school fees need to be paid, the rent is getting behind.
Now you have the opportunity to use your intelligence. To step up to the situation and realise that if you didn't have a second choice for your future, now is the time to consider one.
There is only one thing that is certain, and that is that things change. When we are lulled into that sense of security that a job provides us, we are fooling ourselves into believing that we will always have this security. That we don't need to think anymore, everything is taken care of.
It dulls the senses and makes robotic humans of us all. It's comfortable, we work, we rest, we lose ourselves in social media, and we forget to be the resourceful humans that we are.
During this pandemic we have the opportunity to use our intelligence to create a future that will support us through uncertain and difficult times. It would be short sighted to think that another calamity won't come along in the not too distant future.
It's challenging and revitalising to the human spirit to rise to the occasion. It's not about coping, it's about responding with your creativity and intelligent impulses, to make the most of what you have and to craft a plan to move forward with.
Will you join the many complaining voices or will you rise and respond.
It doesn't matter what you do, do something. Something different, something novel, something that excites you, that uses a skill you didn't think you had. Try something, anything. Change your life to fit your new situation.
366 days Towards Self-Mastery
When I considered my New Year's intentions for 2020 I had just one: To allow my heart to love what it loved...and let it lead me. (If not now, then when?)
I've spent months working on integrating my life. To live life more fully with my home life, my interests, my work, my responsibilities, all coming together, all connected. I want to give each the attention that they desire and need, and still have time and energy for the others. That means living and working from the heart.
As I was clearing out my bookshelf over the Christmas break I discovered Simple Abundance. I set it aside to explore it on New Year's Day as I lazed through another delicious day of nothingness. Sarah, the author, says this book is about living in grace. Living in grace I realised, is about Self-Mastery.
My thirst for understanding the human condition has driven me all my life, and hand-in-hand with self-mastery it has been a life-long goal. And seeing as I love to write, that living in grace is about self-mastery, and I love a bit of a challenge, then if I am truly going to let my heart lead, I really don't have any other choice. So scary as it feels, I'm starting out on a daily mission of leaning into the suggestions of this daybook and making a daily post to keep me accountable. If not now, then when?
I'm Josie. You can find out a little more about me here.
Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy: by Sarah Ban Breathnach.
This book is written for the Australian and NZ market because it refers to seasonal changes. It's available on Amazon here if you'd like to follow along.