Satisfaction & Solstice

The games we play with ourselves are nothing short of amazing. By allocating one or 2 easy to accomplish tasks for the start of each day, then checking them off as complete - it feels far easier to take on the knottier issues.

By joining forces with someone who wasn’t resisting the “so called” tougher obstacles it is possible to step beyond the limits of personal perspectives.

My friend was laughing at retrieving a small nut from oily bilge water for the 5th time. Left to my own devices I would not have chosen laughter as my mode to express my feelings about the difficulties we were encountering.

The question looms large, why choose the stories we live by? My story around preventative action was: it is the lesser of two evils. Better to take action in non-stressed controlled conditions. This of course tends to lead me into feeling virtuous and likewise feeling I should be rewarded for being proactive. Multiple failures to accomplish something that “should” be simple is a great recipe for frustration and or becoming the victim.

Contrasted with each component simply being a step on the road to successful completion changes background completely. You can know this and still find yourself adrift in your personal kayak without the paddle. Changing your story is the fastest way to materialize a paddle and sanity preserver.

In 3 weeks of taking action almost half the crowded white board had items checked off. Then it happened. There were new items to be added and no room. The suggestion was made to erase everything checked, add the new items and get updated.

“Really? Wipe off all the accomplishments?” The idea sort of screamed logic but didn’t begin to address the satisfaction derived from viewing dozens of green checks.

Clearly the invitation was to surrender. I feel a theme. Everything was erased and begun anew. The board was cleared of the crowded past. We chose to focus on what remained. We cleared the decks and rid ourselves of baggage that no longer served. This was remarkably evident as we celebrated Summer Solstice and all the light of long days in the Puget Sound.