I was reading
Rooms by James Rubart the other day, and ran across a very intriguing statement. In the story, one of the main characters commented about how odd it is that we define ourselves by what we “do” to make a living, instead of what makes us “come alive”. (Rubart, 2010, p. 42). A major component of managing stress is remembering to do what makes us come alive.
Five years ago I learned the importance of doing what makes me come alive. For me that included:
1) accepting that naps are OK,
2) once I had more energy I began exploring watercolor painting,
3) that made me so alive I began learning to play acoustic guitar, and
4) then I got up the nerve BIG TIME, and applied to go back to college to pursue a masters of arts in counseling (a 20 year dream of mine!).
Makes me kind of wonder…what will come next in my life!
Too many times in life we don’t take ourselves seriously. We put our ideas and dreams down, listening to the lie “You can never do that!” Often we believe the lie for so long, that finally, we put our ideas off for good. Or...are your dreams still alive? Have they just gone dormant, shriveled up in some dark corner of your soul? If you think there’s a spark of hope left…
• Take yourself seriously!
Don’t put yourself or your ideas or dreams down anymore!
Don’t put your ideas or dreams off any longer!
• Just try it! Better to have tried and failed, than never to have tried! What if…by some crazy chance…you succeed? “It’s better to have tried and failed than to live life wondering what would’ve happened if I had tried” – Alfred Lord Tennyson.
• Build yourself a support team, cheerleaders, a crew pit, whatever you want to call it. Surround yourself with people who believe in you, encourage you, inspire you, challenge you, and celebrate with you.
• Enjoy the sensations that come with doing what makes you come alive. Celebrate and enjoy even the little things, with all your senses, things like:
1) the warmth of the sun on your skin (touch),
2) a morning bird’s song (sound),
3) a breath of fresh air (smell),
4) that amazing moment the sun comes up (or goes down) (sight), and
5) a morning cup of coffee (or whatever is your “cup of tea”) (taste).
Your senses are there for a reason. Use them. Enjoy them.
When you do what makes you come ALIVE, four things happen:
1) You Get Focused: You get to focus intentionally, continually, on something that is interesting, pleasant, peaceful or beautiful to you.
2) You Get Enjoyment: The most difficult thing at the moment will be learning to capture or create something new, different, or challenging. Or you can simply enjoy practicing what you already know.
3) You Get Lost: Enjoy it so much that you get “lost” in time. You should lose all sense of time so that you are totally distracted from the stresses of life. All stress should fade into the background, until “poof!” it disappears (at least temporarily).
4) You Get Recharged: If by chance you “fail” at capturing or creating, that is OK, because you have already succeeded at four other things:
a) relaxing (reducing negative stress),
b) recharging (adding positive back into your life),
c) enjoying yourself, and
d) trying, which is really learning, stretching yourself, growing in your abilities.
That is being alive.
As an old shoe company slogan once said, “Just Do It!”
P.S. The photo is me, with my camera & guitar, wearing my favorite color, with a favorite watercolor painting (by Jeffrey Hull from Cannon Beach) of the beach (Hug Point, OR, a fav place) in the background. So many of my favorites, in one place. This makes me feel ALIVE. :)
Rubart, James (2010). Rooms. Nashville, Tennessee: B&H Publishing Group, p. 42.
