Meaningful Art Brainstorm
Above my piano, there's a lot of space to fill, but I promised you I wouldn't fill it with meaninglessness and I won't. Some ideas are rising to the top, as far as things to put up there, but none have happened yet. One thing's for sure. I'll be going back to Target to get this card. Mostly because it's so optimistic and gung-ho, which is exactly what I need in my life. It's like framing a cheering squad and putting it on my wall to remind me that I believe in me, and remind my family members I believe in them. Which will be especially pertinent if the kids are hating their piano practice and their bored eyes wander up to the art above them...
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I'm also sure I'm going to lay out and frame this phrase, which I talked some about back here.
"As long as it takes."
I need reminding to be present in this beautiful moment of digging in and living love. I can't see these moments when my eyes are glued to future moments, cleverly disguised as finish lines. And there's a peace that comes over me when I say the words. "How long? As long as it takes."
Because when it comes to important things, we're deadline free. When will we stop being there for a friend? When will we stop serving our kids? Being kind to strangers? Seeking truth? The general answer is never. So when it counts, there's no deadline. Calendar pages come and go, but our biggest and best goals never get crossed off. I want to pour my life into the time I have now to love people. It's my one chance. At least the only one I can decide on, and do, now. If I choose to do the right thing, right now, maybe it'll be easier in my future moments, to do the next right thing. I'm a die-hard planner, but maybe that's the only real prep I need for future situations. Do the right thing now. Do the right thing later.
And if the "right" thing to you, sounds like forcing yourself to pretend you're a "better" person, I need to clarify. That's what it sounds like to me sometimes - used to be 97% of the time, and the other measly 3% saved me because I'd catch a whiff of compassion. Listening to (reading) teachers who speak mercy, feels like waves lapping over sand, changing me gently and continuously. Which means I get to enjoy something more like 70% compassion and 30% suck it up. Sometimes I don't take time for this and the hard voices swallow more time again. I get all lost and confused. It gets hard to see the merciful options and if I see them at all, they don't seem valid. I felt this way lately when I took Cadence with me to run errands and I struggled over whether to stop for lunch while we were out or wait til we got home. I knew it would be cheaper, healthier, and yes, even more planet-friendly to eat at home, but we were so thirsty and Cadence kept saying her heels hurt and yet she was being such a good sport about it. I went with the mercy voice, eventually, but it would've been much easier for me if I'd been practicing perspective and rehearsing what's most important at ANY point this month! Let's just say, I volunteered for ALL THE THINGS in March and it's been madness. (I know, March madness...still don't recommend it.)
So, sorry for the major side-note, but God forbid I ever be mistaken for chiming in with the "do more...do better" voices. When you're not sure what the next right thing is, choose compassion, for other people and yourself. Always.
Love you and promise I'll revisit the Make Your Monday routine with an Easter colored label. Let me know what color you'd find most useful in the comments!
I'm also sure I'm going to lay out and frame this phrase, which I talked some about back here.
"As long as it takes."
I need reminding to be present in this beautiful moment of digging in and living love. I can't see these moments when my eyes are glued to future moments, cleverly disguised as finish lines. And there's a peace that comes over me when I say the words. "How long? As long as it takes."
Because when it comes to important things, we're deadline free. When will we stop being there for a friend? When will we stop serving our kids? Being kind to strangers? Seeking truth? The general answer is never. So when it counts, there's no deadline. Calendar pages come and go, but our biggest and best goals never get crossed off. I want to pour my life into the time I have now to love people. It's my one chance. At least the only one I can decide on, and do, now. If I choose to do the right thing, right now, maybe it'll be easier in my future moments, to do the next right thing. I'm a die-hard planner, but maybe that's the only real prep I need for future situations. Do the right thing now. Do the right thing later.
And if the "right" thing to you, sounds like forcing yourself to pretend you're a "better" person, I need to clarify. That's what it sounds like to me sometimes - used to be 97% of the time, and the other measly 3% saved me because I'd catch a whiff of compassion. Listening to (reading) teachers who speak mercy, feels like waves lapping over sand, changing me gently and continuously. Which means I get to enjoy something more like 70% compassion and 30% suck it up. Sometimes I don't take time for this and the hard voices swallow more time again. I get all lost and confused. It gets hard to see the merciful options and if I see them at all, they don't seem valid. I felt this way lately when I took Cadence with me to run errands and I struggled over whether to stop for lunch while we were out or wait til we got home. I knew it would be cheaper, healthier, and yes, even more planet-friendly to eat at home, but we were so thirsty and Cadence kept saying her heels hurt and yet she was being such a good sport about it. I went with the mercy voice, eventually, but it would've been much easier for me if I'd been practicing perspective and rehearsing what's most important at ANY point this month! Let's just say, I volunteered for ALL THE THINGS in March and it's been madness. (I know, March madness...still don't recommend it.)
So, sorry for the major side-note, but God forbid I ever be mistaken for chiming in with the "do more...do better" voices. When you're not sure what the next right thing is, choose compassion, for other people and yourself. Always.
Love you and promise I'll revisit the Make Your Monday routine with an Easter colored label. Let me know what color you'd find most useful in the comments!
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