Fall is my favorite time of year in New Mexico. The temperatures drop into the 70s, the smell of roasting green chili wafts through the air, and the unwavering sun finds a gentle spot in a never-ending sky. For me it creates a reflective space, opening me to things I might be overlooking and ways I may be encountering the world that feel habitual and unserving. Some years ago during a challenging time a Buddhist friend made reference to the concept that each moment, each breath we have the ability to reinvent ourselves. At the time, breathing was about all I could do, but it has continually made an impression on me, how we can continue to make ourselves new.
I have been enjoying regular walks with a friend and in our dialogue, I notice myself describing challenges or areas of discontent and how these elements create my story. The story I am referring to has nothing to do with movies or books, but the narratives we use to describe ourselves or things in our experiences that create our beliefs about ourselves. I notice is how our story’s reflects so much on our ability and often inability to change. And contrarily, as I am diligently preparing for an upcoming workshop in Berkeley, I have been spending lots of time with my guides and intuitive process. And the messages are all pretty much the same. Look to where you want to go, keep your focus on what you want, as attention brings rise to your universe. Simple enough I guess.
I suppose all of us encounter moments when we notice ourselves describing parts of our lives that we don’t like. Have you noticed yourself or someone else talking about a job stress or a frustration in a way that starts sounding like a broken record. Often the things we tell people are components of our story; I live here, I like this, I dislike this, and these are my problems. This information is bound by our limited perceptions and often based on our judgments of what is or what should be. Stories are powerful spaces of transformation and they have the potential to limit us; ” I can’t do this because of this or I have this problem because of this.” This broken record syndrome can sometimes be seen as venting. But when does venting move from just blowing off steam to actually solidifying your reality?
I wonder how to approach the equinox, the beginning of fall in a way to be reflective of the story we buy into about ourselves and the world. If you could live your ideal story, how would it unfold? And what would be the essence of our relationships, our local communities and the world? What would happen if we stopped spotlighting the areas that are not part of what we want to create, and put the beautiful creative potential in the spot light. What if you took a few minutes to write, welcome to my beautiful amazing life a space where inspiration is always at hand. What would it look like if you revised your story, and omitted the parts you don’t like and added the areas of what you are envisioning. No point in emphasizing the lack of money in the bank when we could focus on the ripe apples on the tree. Sometimes the best place to begin change is to start with your story. Happy Equinox!