Bolder!

Reason Enough

Too often we use a skewed value system to measure the worth of our dreams. The message of our culture is "If it can't be measured in dollars and cents then it's a waste time and resources."

Isn't it about time to challenge that limiting belief wherever it shows up in your own life. What do you dream of doing? Even if it makes no difference to anyone but you, even if it has no value to anyone but you, aren't you worth it? 

I have a tree trunk in my office. It's about 3 inches in diameter and almost reaches the ceiling. I forget where I picked it up but one day I put it on a stand, wrapped it in narrow strips of pink, purple and yellow cloth with some fuzzy yarn thrown in for good measure. The picture doesn't really do it justice because it's actually quite pretty with colour and texture dancing around it. I see it everytime I look up. A lot of people ask me what it's for. I simply shrug and smile.

I did "just because". It's a treat for my eyes. Reason enough for me.

Today, do something you love just for the joy of it. Make space for something that makes you smile that secret smile. Simply because.

REASON ENOUGH

On a subway platform
music falls from gifted fingers,
bouncing off commuters too busy
to hear the gift.

The artist plays on,
melody reason enough.
Listeners not required.

In the freeze of February
sculptors unlock beauty
from icy crystal blocks,
daring the sun.

The artist works on,
fulfillment reason enough.
Eternity not required.

In the clear night sky
stars dance with colour
caught in draperies of light
While we sleep.

The Artist paints on
Love reason enough.
Watchers not required.

--Aprille Janes

Choose Joy

This morning, I planned to eat a quick breakfast in front of my computer, trying to get a head start. Last week was so busy that I woke up feeling behind already, so I chose to jump on the treadmill of Too Much To Do before I was even out of bed.

However, life often has other plans for me. As I passed through the living room, something caught my eye on the back deck - a tiny profile so minute I'm not even sure how I noticed it.

 The hummingbird sat resting on the hangar holding his feeder.

I stopped and stood perfectly still, not wanting to spook my visitor. He seemed perfectly at ease, a posture I'm not used to seeing this particular little neighbour take. Normally he buzzes from flower to flower, darting around the yard and disappearing so fast I sometimes think I've imagined him.

Right now, however, this tiny soul sat at rest, watching everyone else hurry - namely the finches on their feeder nearby and me. His movements were so relaxed I could almost imagine him taking a deep breath, enjoying a quiet moment in the sunshine that highlighted his brilliant colour.

Then, with a movement so quick that I barely noticed the transition, his wings whirred, he dropped down to sip a bit of nectar and left on his morning rounds.

Did you know that Hummingbird is a symbol of joy in many traditions? He's a reminder to laugh and enjoy life. I needed that this morning. After my visitor left, I took a deep breath and sat at the table with my breakfast to enjoy a few moments of quiet before my day began.

This morning I chose joy rather than overwhelm and it changed everything.

Perspectives

Our back deck faces west, out over Lake Scugog. We enjoy some incredible sunsets where the sky and water are drenched in vivid pinks, reds, purples and golds. The picture to the left captures one of those moments. (Yes, that's the view from our back deck and I'm constantly grateful for it.)

This past week, I felt the urge to sit in the middle of all that glorious saturation so I paddled out in my kayak and turned to face the far shore as the sun went down. An osprey glided overhead looking for his last catch of the day while behind me, the quiet murmur of a neighbour's conversation  carried to where I drifted. To them I'm sure I was simply a silhouette against the fiery horizon. All in all, a peaceful end to a busy day.

When the light show finally faded, I turned my kayak around to paddle back to the dock and stopped mid-stroke. Dusk lifted from the eastern horizon, darkening the sky as it grew. At the leading edge of the deepening shadow glowed a full moon, seemingly caught high in the branches of a birch tree. The subtle beauty of nightrise caught me by surprise.

I've been so dazzled by sunsets that I missed something lovely taking place right behind me my whole life. I had just never turned around before. 

I had to ask myself, what else have I missed? Where else could I turn around and surprise myself? How about you?

What new ways could you look at life and all it offers?

One truth I've learned as a life coach is that there are always other options. Life is rarely just about either/or choices. If we're patient and wait for it, we'll be offered alternatives and different perspectives.

The beauty of the nightrise didn't reveal itself until the sun slipped below the horizon. That was the element of waiting. The surprise was...well... a surprise. But there were also choices made and action taken.

Nightrise happens whether we're there for it or not. You have to choose to turn around and look in a new direction to discover all that life offers.

Magic Places

 When things got too much for me as a kid, I'd hop on my bike and ride to my magic places. One of my favourites was beside a small pond surrounded on one side by a stone wall. Here I could be alone to figure out life in general and dream my dreams. I'm pretty sure fairies lived there. I'm also sure you had your own special places. 

I grew up, of course, moved away and took on adult responsibilities. Magic places became harder and harder to find. Too busy, too many other priorities. Not enough fairy dust.

Yesterday I gave myself the gift of an afternoon on the lake in my kayak and I found one of those magic places again - a channel about 10 feet wide that cuts through a marsh and deep into the island I live on. In the summer it's too choked with waterlilies to get into but in early spring it's clear and I had it all to myself.

I'm not sure who built it. It may even have been the beavers who keep it clear. In fact, it looked like a beaver highway with their homes and food caches all along the banks. It was quiet but not lonely. Turtles plopped into the water from the sunny banks, redwing blackbirds sang their hearts out from the rushes and when I reached the pond anchoring the far end, two deer bounded away, startled by the sound of my paddles. I even saw the twinkle of fairy wings in the new grass.

I need that time out in nature to recharge, to let go of all the should's and oughta's and to dream again.  

We all need magic places where we can go and just hang out, without the pressure to do something or be somebody. How else can we reclaim our joy and remember that who we are being is way more important than what we are doing?

Give yourself the gift of an hour or so. Do it on a regular basis. Find your magic place and hang out with some fairies. Remember who you are.