Beginning

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. 

Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it."

- Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

We are used to quick fixes in our society, surface band-aids to make us feel better in the short-term. If anything will take a long concerted effort, we tend to dismiss it as too hard and not worth the time and work we will put into it, or even worse- impossible. We automatically associate effort with suffering and choose to keep the ailment after the short-term fixes don't work, and you know they won't.


In the meantime, we yearn to live large. We have dreams and desires that are quietly dismissed. In our heads we hear a stream of criticism: you're not smart, pretty, creative, talented <.......> enough to do that. We tell ourselves we will fail before we even begin in earnest. We distract ourselves with the mundane day to day routines that start to feel like a big old rut.


Desires were planted within us for a reason. You wouldn't have dreams that were impossible for you to achieve. We were given the wonderful gift of these yearnings for the sole purpose of living what's inside of us. You and I have gifts that the world needs for us to share. Don't be afraid of your greatness.


Right now I am taking steps daily, without seeing the whole staircase. I'm not concerning myself with "how" I will live my purpose, I'm only aware of the desire I cannot quench. I cannot help but write, so write I will. I am not obsessing on whether the step I'm taking is perfect, or whether my work is perfect, I'm just doing something.


I believe I will be shown the way, a light on the next stair if you will, at the exact time I need illumination. I am re-reading The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. A friend recommend Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott, lo and behold it was already on my bookshelf, I'm reading that as well. I'm writing three pages of long-hand stream of thought every morning. I'm reading good literature, right now Jim Harrison. I'm getting re-acquainted with my creative impulse. I'm opening myself to doing what I love, unattached to the outcome.


What are you called to do, but are holding yourself from? Our dreams are worth 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour of our day. Start, with me... step by step.

The First Step

"Faith is taking the first step when you don't see the whole staircase."

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

A topic that has been on my mind is the idea that we can be our own worst enemies. If I live from a place of fear, I live a small life. If I play it safe, I keep myself busy with the mundane and fail to pursue my dreams. I do this because I want to control my environment, if it's small, I can stand in one place and see all of it. This smallness is comfortable, safe, it offers a baby blanket-like security. 


Stepping into the unknown involves risk, it involves being in an unfamiliar environment, coping with change. We tell ourselves stories about the unknown, that it probably won't be any better than our current situation, that it will have it's own challenges, which might be harder, that it will involve a super-human amount of work, and in the end may not be worth the effort. 


I'm ready to be uncomfortable and do the work it takes to grow into the my best authentic self. I'm ready to squash the fears and live what's inside of me. I know it won't be easy, and that's okay.


Welcome to my blog. I'm taking the first step to discovering bliss today, are you?