For some reason the book 1984 has been calling out to me over the past couple of months. Once in a while it may be a news story which catches my eye and ignites a desire to pick it up. As I’ve read other books there may be a direct reference or even just a subtle hint which gets me thinking about the classic again. After putting it off I’ve picked it back up and have been rewarded with a wildly rich experience.
As I’ve mentioned before, I love the quote about no person ever stepping into the same river twice. This maxim certainly holds for reading books. I’m a very different person than the one who’s read this book twice before and have the benefit of more years of life experience to view it from.
The story may have been written long ago but the struggles within it are almost as if Orwell were writing this story with the benefit of a crystal ball. Profoundly thought provoking, it’s got my brain going in so many directions at once.
If you haven’t read this book before or it has been more than a decade I’d recommend giving it a read. Very timely and guaranteed to cause discomfort in a beneficial way.
Time to get off my telescreen and get back to reading 😉
Attitude is everything and has such incredible power over how we see the world. When I take the time to choose the right mindset the world is a profoundly wonderful place, even when life is a little difficult. When I choose a poor mindset, especially over something minor, the world feels a little colder and I’m left feeling empty.
I’m currently chilling at the Charlotte airport, sitting at a countertop with my phone plugged in. I was supposed to be on my next flight by now, but that’s not how things worked out. Instead I’ve got a couple of hour delay before my last flight of the day.
It would be so easy to be frustrated over the added inconvenience, but that’s not the right choice. The better mindset is to see this as a blessing, some bonus time I’ve been gifted in order to work on a couple of projects. Over the past several hours I’ve both started constructing my presentation for the upcoming CVSHRM conference AND started working on an idea which could end up being my next book. The creative juices are flowing and I’ve now been given extra time to roll with it.
This may sound crazy, but I’m thankful for snowy roads today. My commute to Eau Claire was a bit longer than usual due to the road conditions. Between snow, ice, & wind the speeds in all directions were significantly slower than usual. This led to a couple of unexpected benefits.
Thanks to the slickness of the roads I knew I’d be in for a long ride. With that mindset I calmed way down, accepted whatever was thrown my way, and I could feel my blood pressure drop. It was so much more relaxing when I knew I was in no hurry. Instead I leaned into the slower pace and totally chilled while driving.
The extra time in the car also helped me make some serious progress on the next book I’ve been reading. With the added calmness I felt as if I were able to retain significantly more than usual which was great! There was also time to pause, reflect, plan, and then get back to the book itself. Bonus reading time!
Sure, it’s not ideal, but if I choose the right mindset there’s even something to be thankful for on snowy roads.
LOL – so I started on my title and ended up writing and re-writing it several times. None of the revisions had quite the right vibe so I’m blowing them all up, deleting the title, and starting with the body. Yes, this is the exact opposite of how writer Carmine Gallo teaches us to start writing a TED talk… thank goodness this is a blog and Carmine won’t be reading this 😉 Forget starting with the point, I’m letting my brain run wild and will come back to the point at the end. {fingers crossed}
Funny, I think I just landed on the topic, it wasn’t at all what I was expecting, but it is spot on. I’m grateful for creating the habit of writing about my gratitude each day. In the past I’ve written similar posts, but it just feels right to focus on it again this evening. As someone once wisely said, “we never step in the same river twice.” Though the topic may have similarities to what I’ve written in the past I am seeing it through a slightly different lens, changed by the perspective of time and experience.
In the past I’ve written about the beauty of having a journal of sorts to go back and rekindle old memories. I’ve also blogged about the peace of having time alone to wrap up the day. This is slightly different, tonight I’m thankful for the ability of writing a daily blog to allow me to sort out my thoughts, emotions, and experiences from throughout the day.
By pausing and reflecting on the day I create an opportunity to let the solids slowly precipitate out of suspension. This is my time to allow my brain to put together the 5,000 piece puzzle of experiences from the day. By writing I’m forced to process the day, think on it, and then translate it into written word. Writing in of itself is difficult, putting words to so many thoughts and ideas can be exhausting. Similar to distance running or weight lifting the exercise strengthens me though it may be uncomfortable at times.
This evening my brain was going to go down so many different paths, but after taking time to pause and reflect there are really only a couple of themes… rekindling and strengthening relationships, creating, moving in the direction of dreams, and pausing to appreciate all the gifts surrounding me – especially life itself. In taking time to process it all today I will be going to bed with a smile and a full heart. My gratitude becomes the lullaby which carries me off to peaceful rest. I sleep with the joy which can only come from thankfulness and stillness.
Our run this morning was warm but one of the most brutal in quite some time. It’s been quite a while since I’d last run on very icy roads. My feet would find solid purchase for a dozen steps or so only to then almost shoot right out from under me on the next steps. I’d move a little ways to the left and then a little to the right with no luck, everywhere I put my feet there seemed to be ice.
There wasn’t anything I could do to change the ice so I chose to roll with it. I shifted my posture to keep my center of gravity perfectly over my feet. My strides where greatly condensed as I went with shorter steps in order to keep myself from getting to out of balance. Due to the combination of clean blacktop, packed snow, ice, and potholes each step was an adventure and very rarely did more than three straight steps feel the same.
This was an opportunity for me to push the edge. I would rather not run on conditions like this, but what an opportunity to push my boundaries a bit. By running on this edge I was able to work on my balance, my focus, adjusting my steps, my breathing, and strengthening the little stabilizing muscles in my legs and feet. Before I knew it I was actually enjoying this run on the edge. For sure, it still hurt, but there was something fun in pushing the boundaries of what I feel comfortable doing.
When considering the past few weeks, possibly months, in much of life I’m seeing where I’ve pushed the edges. I’ve moved right to the boundary of comfort and ridden the line between there and discomfort. On that edge I’ve found growth. There’s more room to push that edge further and further out. The stretching doesn’t always feel good, it often starts off as the opposite, but the end result is positive. Not only that, but I’m finding that if I keep asking myself the right questions and choosing the right mindset I actually enjoy pushing the edge. Despite the discomfort I know I’m moving forward. Kind of like increasing the weights while lifting, it’s a good discomfort. If I do it right I have the opportunity to enjoy both the destination (joy) and the journey (suffering).
This might be one of those nights when I start to explore and idea to come back to a little later. I feel like there’s a lot more to pull apart and extract to this concept, but I want to let this ferment further. May this blog be a future thought seed.
Two wonderful reasons to remember to listen today, both for very different reasons.
The first was remembering to listen rather than react. My mind quickly races to an answer, long before a question is asked. If I react too quickly I miss hearing the correct question and answer incorrectly. Pause, listen, think, and then respond if necessary. Too often I’ve responded when response was needed. Today reminded me of the power of listening completely and then responding in due time. Remember to listen rather than react.
The second was remembering to listen closely and attentively in the stillness. The voice can be heard anytime, but I must find stillness to hear it. Create space, eliminate noise, and listen with more than my ears. In that space if I listen closely with my soul I will hear the call. Remember to listen closely in the stillness.
Two simple lessons, both profound. Remember to listen, the reward is so much greater than talking and responding.
Two wonderful reasons to remember to listen today, both for very different reasons.
The first was remembering to listen rather than react. My mind quickly races to an answer, long before a question is asked. If I react too quickly I miss hearing the correct question and answer incorrectly. Pause, listen, think, and then respond if necessary. Too often I’ve responded when response was needed. Today reminded me of the power of listening completely and then responding in due time. Remember to listen rather than react.
The second was remembering to listen closely and attentively in the stillness. The voice can be heard anytime, but I must find stillness to hear it. Create space, eliminate noise, and listen with more than my ears. In that space if I listen closely with my soul I will hear the call. Remember to listen closely in the stillness.
Two simple lessons, both profound. Remember to listen, the reward is so much greater than talking and responding.
It is one thing to read, study, and visualize doing something. It is wholly another to actually do that same thing. While training is all well and good it is easy to think I know how I will respond. Today I had an opportunity to reality test how much my practice has helped.
When something unexpected happens I have a choice to make. All that practice paid off as the muscle memory went right into action and I responded in the way I wanted rather than reacting as I would have. In this scenario it made all the difference.
I was offered an opportunity to exercise my stoic practice today. In some ways I found success and in other ways I found opportunities for improvement. Pausing to think was great, not foreseeing and thinking through the possibility of the change was not so great. The opportunity to learn through real life exercise was priceless and will continue to help me grow and close the gap.
Dominic is starting to work on his Eagle Scout project. The potential project includes creating a dog park in our neighborhood. The first step before he can even put his proposal together is to ask all the nearby home owners if they would be okay with that.
No worries, Dominic just put on his Scout uniform, grabbed his notepad, and started knocking on doors. How wild is that? Even better, he doesn’t know who more than half the people are! Dominic is basically going out and doing cold calls voluntarily in support of a good cause.
That simple action makes me so proud. It’s be so easy to take the easy way out and find a different project, use a over, or some other form of communication. Nope, he’s grabbing the bull by the horns and has received some tremendous feedback already.
One more reason I’m proud of Dominic, he understands that some of the best things in life lay well beyond the point of discomfort. Never give in to fear when courage is the right answer.
Rather than boarding a flight to an ocean beach I was wandering the woods in the snow. Quite the contrast, right? I was exactly where I should be.
Becky and I spent most of our morning at Pike’s Peak outside of MacGregor, Iowa. Due to the cold weather and snowfall we were amongst the few in the entire park. Once we were more than 100 yards from the observation area we never saw another soul.
I drew in breaths of fresh autumn air through my nose and concentrated on soaking in each exquisite little detail of the sights and sensations around me. The bright red leaves and even more scarlet berries of one type of plant. The drops of water resting on the waxy underside of oak leaves. Each little “brick” in the elaborate lattice work of the limestone rock outcroppings. The sensation of the cool winter-ish breeze and snow rushing against my face and tickling the hairs of my beard. The lighting of the woods shifting and transforming as the sun danced amongst the clouds. The music of Becky’s voice as we shared our joys of the wilderness. Each step. Each breath. Each individual second. Pure magic, pure joy.
Our morning was spent in a walking meditation in the stillness of the woods. Exactly where I was called to be in those moments.
If this were my last day I would go peacefully, full of joy, fully satisfied, and with a heart full of love. Today I have lived.
Thankful for Forty 