Day 13/366 days Towards Self-Mastery. Status: feeling enriched
There's a habit that formed that drove my need to reach for, to strive for more and more. It emerged from the story that I wasn't supported.
It's fair to say that at an early age, the support I needed wasn't forthcoming, however I didn't leave it there. I took it all the way through my life.
When I look at that from a neurological pathways perspective, I can see how single-minded that story was. How entrenched that pathways was. How my neurones fired so quickly down that causeway in my brain that it didn't check in with my frontal cortex at all. It wasn't something I thought about. It was simply something I knew.
And I guess that is why it's so important to reach for increasing awareness.
When our brain is telling us a story over and over, we can't see the wood for the trees. We simply believe it. And then we notice it everywhere. I was noticing people not being supportive all through my life, until I began to notice the ones that were.
It's not rocket science. What it is, is brain biology. It's embedded neurological pathways that form when we continue to tell ourselves the same old story. And that road becomes well warn and the path of least resistance. It fires off before we have the presence of mind to consider an alternative thought.
Today's inspiration:
Awaken your heart to the abundance you already have. Worrying about our security obscures our vision of the riches we have and keeps our mind in turmoil.
Make an journal entry of the riches that you already have in your life. Keep adding to it. Look around you and discover how much is there that supports you.
Do you have your health, food on your table, somewhere to live, family to connect with? Friends, a regular income?
Take in every item you see in your home and ask how it supports you.
It's been about 19 years since I began flying solo. Living on my terms and supporting myself. There have been difficult time and times that have been absolutely magic.
One evening it occurred to be to look more closely around me and discover what there is in my life that supports me. Was this story I was telling myself for decades really true.
Here's what I discovered:
My clothing keeps me warm and covered and not entirely unkept.
Just 10 pair of shoes keep my feet safe and dry, and they're a pretty good match for my outfits.
My bed embraces me cosily every night and takes me into the deepest sleep.
This home is a magic abode that charms everyone who enters her, ensuring they feel peaceful, sleep deeply and rest well.
That car that sits patiently in my carport is loyal and reliable.
Tabasca, my kitty, is a loving companion.
My friends are fun to be with, and listen when I've needed to bounce around an upset or disharmony that life throws at me from time to time.
This amazing community has shown me how faithful they are when the chips are really down.
Health-wise I fare pretty well, and the meds I take for asthma support me to breathe well until my body heals even more deeply.
A fledgling though productive veggie garden and fruit trees laden with fruits provide me with delicious food and an incentive to prepare my food well with loving intent.
The list continues. As I notice more to appreciate that supports the richness of my life, I am able to live more fully in it.
Even finding this inspirational book on my bookshelf was a magic piece of self-supporting mastery.
This is awareness. Opening our eyes to what we have. Coming out from under the conditioned stories that we hold onto. As soon as we hear our inner voice telling us this is how things are, there's your red flag right there.
Awareness rewrites those neural pathways and releases you from the prison of your conditioned mind.
What else is possible?
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.