on multiple occasions throughout your lifetime. For instance, being an amazing parent can be your life’s work strongly for 18 years, then perhaps you have different work to do. Your life’s work may not be something you are recognized or financially compensated for, such as parenting, a beloved hobby, or a variety of other activities typically deemed inconsequential. Your love for a pursuit, however, gives it meaning. You’ll know you have discovered your life’s work when you wake eager to face each day and you feel good about not only what you do but also who you are.
481. Residing at the Helm Being Your Own Village
Simple survival requires us to be in possession of many skills. The pursuit of dreams requires many more. Most individuals rely on the support of a village, whether peopled by relatives or community members, to effectively address the numerous ways we need assistance. This can mean anything from asking favors of acquaintances and leaning on loved ones for support to paying a skilled artisan to handle specialized tasks. However, each human being is born with the capacity to be their own village. We embody many roles throughout our lifetimes, all of which are representative of our capacity for self-sufficiency and self-determination. In different moments in our lives, we are our own counselor, janitor, caregiver, cook, healer, teacher, and student. Our willingness to joyfully take on these roles grants us the power to maintain control over the direction our life’s journey takes. In times past, human beings learned all of the skills needed for survival. Today, the majority of people specialize in a single discipline, which they hone throughout their lives. Thus, many of us feel uncomfortable standing at the helm of our own existence. We question our ability to make decisions concerning our own health,
happiness, and welfare, and are left feeling dependent and powerless. But the authority to take ultimate responsibility for our lives is simply a matter of believing that we have the necessary faith and intelligence to cope with any circumstance the universe chooses to place in our path. Proving that we can each be our own villages through action enables us to accept that we are strong enough to exist autonomously. Cooking, cultivating a garden of fruits and vegetables, undertaking minor home repair, or adopting a healthier lifestyle can help you reassert your will. Being your own village does not mean embracing isolation, for a balanced life is built upon the dual foundations of the inner and the outer villages. Rather, being your own village is a celebration of your wondrous inner strength and resourcefulness, as well as an acknowledgment of your innate ability to capably steer the course of your life.
482. Listening to Our Bodies Illness Lessons
When our body, mind, and spirit are in balance, we experience good health. But sometimes we get caught up in life’s parade of change and movement, and things get out of balance. Just as there are seasons in nature, our bodies go through times of cleansing and times of activity. Illness is one way our bodies restore the balance they seek, as it cleanses the buildup of unwanted manifestations of negative energy in our system. When we are not feeling our best, we can go beyond addressing the physical symptoms to listen to our bodies as they tell us the changes needed to restore balance.
Our bodies give us signals, but if we don’t listen when they tell us that they are tired or stressed, then the imbalance increases and a stronger message is required, one that is generally expressed by illness or dis-ease. The first step to regaining
equilibrium involves slowing down, eating healthy food, getting more rest, and taking soothing remedies. Once we have nurtured ourselves with these things, we can begin examine our illness for the message. A heavy head may be a sign that we have been thinking negatively, harboring anger, resentment, or guilt. A sore throat may be telling us we have been speaking without integrity—gossip, insults, twisting the truth, or even speaking ill of ourselves, all of which can knock us off balance. A sore throat and swollen glands can also mean you are cleansing and processing some powerful emotions at present. Stomach problems could mean that we are having trouble accepting or “digesting” something. Only you have the knowledge of your thoughts and choices that will allow you to decipher the messages from your body. All it takes is time and attention.
When we take the time to listen to our bodies we can learn how to restore our balance and improve our lives. By honoring the messages of our bodies, we can turn a time of illness into a constructive time of restoration, healing, and revitalization.
483. Conscious Decisions Going Against What Is Popular
Just because an idea or way of doing things is popular doesn’t mean it’s right for everyone. However, part of the way that something becomes popular is that many of us don’t take the time to determine what’s right for us; we simply do what most of the people we know are doing. In this way, our decisions about life are made by default, which means they aren’t what we call conscious decisions. There may be many other options available, but we don’t always take the time to explore them. This may be the result of feeling overwhelmed or pressured by family, peers, and humanity at large, to do things their way, the way things have always been done.
Regardless of the cause, it is important that, as often as we can, we decide for ourselves what to do with our lives rather than just drift along on the current of popular opinion.
It is not always easy to make decisions that go against the grain. Many people feel threatened when those close to them make choices divergent from the ones they are making. Parents and grandparents may be confused and defensive when we choose to raise our children differently from the way they raised us. Friends may feel abandoned if we decide to change our habits or behavior. Meanwhile, on our side of the fence, it’s easy to feel frustrated and defensive when we feel unsupported and misunderstood simply because we are thinking for ourselves. It can be exhausting to have to explain and re-explain our points of view and our reasons.
This is where gentleness, openness, and tolerance come into play. It helps if we are calmly persistent, consistent, and clear as we communicate to those around us why we are making the choices we are making. At the same time, we have the right to say that we are tired of talking about it and simply need our choices to be respected. Our lives belong to us and so do our decisions. Those who truly love us will stand by us and support our choices, never mind what’s popular.
484. Opportunity for Reflection Hard Days
We all have days that seem endlessly difficult and hard. On these days, it is as if the odds are stacked against us and we just can’t get a break as one challenging situation follows another. We may feel like we’re standing in the ocean getting hit by wave after wave, never able to get a full breath. Sometimes it’s necessary or worth it to stay in the fray and work our way through. Other times, the best idea is
相关推荐：
loading