Yesterday saw the end of my summer visitors; it’s been a few months packed with parties, beaches and dining delights.
My jeans are tighter for it but my soul is happy.
What I hadn’t noticed in all my enjoyment was that September 1st had already passed and this date marks 7 years since leaving my day job.
I used to dread this first day of the school year knowing that it meant another year of boredom, lethargy and constantly falling ill with all sorts of symptoms.
But 7 years on I’m grateful that’s now not the norm.
When I look back at my “working self” I see a girl who lived and breathed urgency and stress.
She thought going faster and working harder were the name of the game.
Believing that ambition was a trophy, something to be proud of and relaxation needed to be earned.
Not that ambition is wrong or gone but I’ve learned there’s a helpful “soul goal” ambition and then there’s just trying to find a sense of self-worth working like a dog.
Today I see a wiser woman, one who lives on purpose and at a much more graceful pace.
One who takes her time and is no longer racing through life.
My tastes and pace have changed incredibly, my mysterious symptoms all gone.
How Wisdom Calls….
Where once I needed the busy city, the noise and the chaos, today I crave the quite spaces.
This really hit home when last week I went searching for hotels in Dublin.
I found myself declining the offer to stay with my family, something I’d usually do in pricey Dublin and instead seeking out space to retreat in for time alone.
My requirements were simple, the hotel needed to be situated outside of the city and next to a park, leaving ample opportunity to be in nature rather than noise.
I’ve learned that when wisdom invites me to consider doing something different, something that might look “un-necessary” to others, even extravagant….
Something that might not be the norm, that it’s important to follow that call.
Often it’s a call “home”.
Home to our wellbeing and home to the part of ourselves we’ve been ignoring in the pursuit of chasing approval & attending to others.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned over time it’s that we must be selfish about that wellbeing, selfish about our state of mind.
It’s all we’ve got.
When that goes down the whole ship begins to sink and whoever is sailing with us will also drown.
So next time you hear the gentle call of wisdom asking you to refuel or calling you in a certain “illogical” direction, maybe it’s to leave your job, maybe it’s to say “NO”, maybe it’s for time alone.
Listen up and go home.
Home to what you truly want.
She will call you gently to “try this”, “go there”, “do that” but be warned our insecurities like to have their say.
“That’s extravagant”
“I can’t afford it”
“It will offend my family”
“It doesn’t make sense”
“I don’t really need it”
Forget this learned thinking that keeps you stuck in the same cycle with your life backed up against a wall, instead, commit to wisdom’s call.
Gratitude,
Grace
Recent Comments