4/5/20
I know that right now things are incredibly tough for many, many people, and I’m not here to subtract from that. However, in looking at the whole picture, I want to acknowledge that, whether we like it or not, we’ve been put in an incubator. We’ve been forced to create new routines, new ways of interacting, some of us are starting new job searches entirely.
Generally, when I’m at a crossroads and about to start something new- a job, a relationship, a new habit, (fill in the blank), I tend to go about this one of two ways.
The first way consists of complete paralysis: I sit still and try to mentally process every step of what I am about to do upon beginning my new journey. I try to play out every scenario in my head, searching for guarantees that what I am about to embark on is the right choice.
The second- which tends to be my preferred method- looks like the exact opposite. Like a kid in a candy shop, I charge straight into the unknown. Leaving little space in my schedule, or time in my day for pause, I would move as quickly as I could in an attempt to make progress and get to the finish line as quickly as I can.
Here’s the good news: we’ve been thrown into our new lives without much time to process, which has essentially eliminated option one. As someone who dove headfirst into quarantine option-two-style, I’ve realized that this is not sustainable. If you were one of those people whose “Shelter in Place To-Do List” looked like a list of college undergrad courses, I’m right there with you. Turns out, “ Solar garden herbology” isn’t as high on my priority list as I thought it was.
So, how about option three? Can we move through this new experience in a way that allows us to continue growing as individuals, while also finding the time to process what is happening around us, and within us?
Have you seen a baby learn how to walk, or talk? They don’t read a manual. They don’t agonize over it. They just walk.
The process of starting something new is a physical one. It’s not really a head thing. It’s a gut thing. According to the Chakras, our second chakra, which is in the center of our pelvic region, is where we store our creativity. It’s where we birth new ideas and new projects. Yes, logic is good, and reflection is great. But it’s the doing and the being that gets us where we’re going, not so much the analyzing. We just have to have a little faith in the process, and take a step forward.
And that’s how we start. We just ...start.