Monday, December 12, 2011

Doing one thing differently

I'm not intimidated by the idea of change.  If things didn't change, nothing would ever be different.  The one constant about life is that it changes.... and when someone stops changing, they're dead.  I can adapt to global kinds of changes...the shifts and shivers beneath my feet.  I may not much care for them - like getting laid off just before Christmas one year, and right after it another - but I can adapt. 

What I'm not so much a fan of  are the kinds of slow plodding steps necessary to change something about oneself from the inside out.  These are the kinds of changes necessary if I'm going to realign what I've been doing more closely to how I want to live.  But they're slow and small and require attention to the kind of detail I'm much happier overlooking.

Each day, I intend to do at least one thing different from what I've been doing, and chronicle it here.  What I'm hoping is that the accountability will keep me disciplined and focused.  I'm not sure how long I'll do it...until I no longer feel the need to hold myself accountable, I suppose.  And since I can't predict how long that might take, I'm not making any promises I can't - or might not - keep.

Yesterday, I started off by switching the whole milk I've been drinking in my coffee with 2% - at least in the morning.  When I went out to a late lunch with a friend, I had cream in the deliciously decadent French-pressed coffee in which she insisted we indulge.  The coffee certainly deserved it.     

And I did something completely different - by going to the gym at 830 AM - on a Sunday morning, it was still relatively quiet.  It felt so good to get back on my favorite machine.  I spent the time concentrating on breathing, engaging in the same meditative practice I started when I was a child going deeper and deeper into myself while the adults around me droned on.  Inner space feels just as big - if not bigger - than exterior space but I can use some practice holding myself there. 

Today so far, I've blogged - a discipline I abandoned along the way - and I'm off to grab my yoga mat.  My neck and back are anxiously awaiting delivery of the new mattress on Thursday.  And I put 2% in my coffee this morning again, too. 

3 comments:

rose AKA Walk in the Woods - she/her said...

I've been REfocusing myself this season. I've been beginning each morning with my usual prayer of gratitude and scheduling my tasks for the day. Nothing different there, but when the sun - or daylight as the case may be - makes itself visible to me, I've been stepping outdoors and offering a blessing of gratitude and statement of objective for the day ~ what I plan to realize before sunset. It's both familiar and different for me … and quite powerful I'm seeing!

Unknown said...

thats a great idea, rose...thanks for sharing it. im going to try it myself tomorrow! xox

oneworld said...

nice post.