I SPY

What is it about this time of year that brings people down?

Is it the pressures of the holidays? The commercialism? The lack of funds? The dreariness and cold?

Or is it a feeling of loose ends? Of not completing something and having run out of time?

Is it hard to see the new year as a new beginning? A blank canvas with a million possibilities. Is there a sense of getting back on the same ride to end up exactly in the same place a year from now? An endless loop?

Then I read, "We are a product of our choices, not of our circumstances." Eric Allenbaugh, Ph.D.
And it hit me; I choose to feel stuck. I'm repeating the same reaction to this time of the year that I have every year. And this negative reaction never changed anything before so why would I expect it to now? Why do I do this? Because it is routine thought conditioning that I've created to avoid dealing directly with situations.

And I thought back to the moments where I've made major changes and realized it was when I decided to face a situation head on. Unfortunately, life has to grab me by the shoulders and shake me senseless to get my attention; like death, divorce or illness. So instead of my normal routine of walking through life like a zombie, what if I choose to live fully aware, all the time?

And like a true field investigator, I studied some people around me and took notes. Those who seem to walk a path where problems are easily overcome and needs are magically met. They hardly get sick, seem to have endless energy, and are like beacons in the dark. What is it about them that makes them different?

I discovered that they don't believe in failure. These are learning opportunities. They expect to succeed in their endeavors. They take risks. They are clear about personal missions and confidently reach for them. They are committed to their own growth. They don't carry around emotional garbage from the past. When it comes up, they face it, deal with it, and move on. They live large.

So this time I choose to use these people as an example. To be aware of my reaction to situations. It can't hurt. It's definitely different than the usual well-worn rut I'm used to.

Thanks Lee, hubby, Laura and Uta. Bet you didn't know I was studying you so closely.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Which reminds me again why TRUST is such a good new year word for me.

I would tattoo it on my forehead. But then I wouldn't see it.