Molly Davis's Blog, page 44
July 22, 2019
Being Present
This morning three things occurred in quick succession:
I tripped over a rock that holds our screen door open because I wasn’t looking where I was going.
I ran into the door of the dog crate because I hadn’t closed it properly.
I was hit on the head when something fell off of a hook because I was moving too fast.
Life was trying to tell me something.
Be present. Instead of being where we are, we look ahead and miss what is right in front of us, or in this case, right under our feet.
Be present. Instead of tending well to what is called for now, we move ahead leaving a trail of unfinished business behind us.
Be present. Instead of running the race set before us like the long distance event that it is, we sprint ahead until life crashes down around us.
In all three instances in that short chain of events, the message was the same.
Be present.
Photo by Martin Damboldt from Pexels
July 21, 2019
Creating Space
Last night as we sat outside with a glass of wine and our calendars, we looked back over the last few weeks, and out over the ones ahead, and it was obvious that our days had been, and will be, filled with things that matter. What wasn’t obvious was space, and space matters too.
There were things that couldn’t be taken out, but some that could. One, in particular, stuck out as negotiable. It needed to be done. It just didn’t need to be done right now. With one click I deleted it off of my calendar, and not only did space open up in my days, but in my chest as well. My breathing slowed, my shoulders dropped, and an inner window opened wide.
It’s amazing what can happened when we build space into our days. Sometimes it’s easier said than done, but like anything, it’s a habit to be cultivated. Who knew rescheduling a colonoscopy could be so good for your soul?
Pixabay
July 20, 2019
For Sunday Reflection
“Consider this: the only person you’re guaranteed to be with every day of your life is you.”
When I read this sentence, it landed as true. And if it’s true, then we’d best get on with becoming the kind of person we’d like to hang out with.
July 19, 2019
Cheers!
It’s been a very big week here. We’ve worked hard, started early, ended late, and kept going when we wanted to stop, The payoff is that what felt impossible to accomplish has been, and now it’s time to put our feet up, take a deep breath, and celebrate what happens when people pull together.
Cheers to making the impossible happen. In my world, and yours.
July 18, 2019
The Basement
Today we tackled the basement. Old memories, holiday decorations, collections of this and that, things saved in case needed to repair other things, and on and on and on. Everything down there had a story, and it was hard to know where to start, what to save, what to store, and what to sell.
It was a daunting task.
When faced with a daunting task, it is almost impossible to take the first step.
When faced with a daunting task, it is almost impossible to do anything but take the first step.
When faced with a daunting task, it is that first step that makes the next step possible. And the next, and the next, and the next.
The basement is where we put things that we want to think about later. When later comes, a step at a time, what was daunting becomes doable, and what is doable becomes done.
July 17, 2019
Give Me A Break
Yesterday was a very big day for Gracie-the-chocolate-labradoodle. We had a private training session where she learned some big new things, and she did great. Later in the day she came with us to a community dinner where she practiced being calm in the midst of her greatest temptations to go crazy, and she did great.
Today, she is completely worn out. It was our plan to build on the training that we started yesterday, and she wasn’t having any of it. In every way she knew how she was telling us that she needed a break. A day of rest to just be, and not do, and that is exactly what she got.
We would all do well to follow her example. When everything in us is telling us to take a break, let’s do everything we can to do that. Take a day, or an hour, or fifteen minutes to just be, and not do.
July 16, 2019
What Do We Allow?
“Whatever you allow gets reinforced.”
Matt Luchisnger
This morning in a private training session with Matt, owner North West Balanced Dog Training, as we were talking about Gracie-the-chocolate-labradoodle, he reminded us that whatever we allow her to do reinforces that particular behavior. If we ask her to lie down, and she begins to inch her way (still on her belly of course, since she’s a clever little girl) closer and closer to a toy or morsel of food, and we allow it, we’ve just reinforced that she is welcome to do so. Which she isn’t. Not if we want her to take us seriously. Which we do.
Prior to Gracie it just never occurred to me that what works when training a dog works pretty well when training a human too. Allow fearful thoughts to creep further in, and they will. Allow others to treat us with disrespect, and they will. Allow ourselves to look for the negative, and we will. Allow old stories to rule our life, and they will.
Whatever we allow gets reinforced.
July 15, 2019
Cleaning Up Our Mess
Any good dog owner knows that it is their responsibility to clean up after their pup, especially when in shared public spaces. Scoop up whatever gets deposited, take it back home, and throw it in the trash can.
It’s pretty straightforward.
If it’s our mess, we clean it up.
Today, returning from a morning walk with a friend and her dog, toting a poop bag, we came across an obviously filled bag that someone had decided to leave near the sidewalk, assuming I guess, that someone else would take care of it. They assumed right. We did.
However.
That’s not how it works.
If it’s our mess, we clean it up.
We clean up after our dogs, and ourselves for that matter, we don’t leave it for someone else to take care of.
If it’s our fault, we clean it.
If we hurt someone, we clean it up.
If we get it wrong, we clean it up.
If we make a poor choice, we clean it up.
If we avoid what is ours to do, we clean it up.
If it’s our mess, we clean it up.
Life can be messy enough without having to pick up after someone else.
July 14, 2019
Full Circle
From the moment we arrive on the planet, we are meant to be at home in our own hearts, and yet we often wander far and wide in search of what has always been right here.
We look outside of ourselves for love and belonging, rather than remembering to love and belong to ourselves.
We look to others to do for us what we are meant to do for ourselves.
We look to our work to give our lives meaning rather than bringing our lives to our work in a meaningful way.
The only path home brings us full circle back to ourselves.
Welcome home.
July 13, 2019
Working With What We’ve Got
It is so easy to add something new. To take a quick trip to the grocery store for a few more things rather than using what’s already in our fridge. To search for another piece of clothing rather than using what’s already in our closet. To take another online course rather than using the gifts and skills already in our wheelhouse. To paint the walls a different color rather than working with the one that’s already there.
Learning to work with what we’ve got calls on our creativity and imagination.
Learning to work with what we’ve got helps us put our talents to good use in new ways.
Learning to work with what we’ve got expands our capacity to solve problems.
Learning to work with what we’ve got teaches us to be content with what have.
Learning to work with what we’ve got helps us to be grateful for the life that is already ours.
Today a dear friend showed up with lunch in the midst of a big day of moving another dear friend into her new home. Rather than going to the store to buy more groceries for our lunch, she simply worked with what she had. And it was perfect.
