(Photo by BHG)
I had the wonderful pleasure of sitting down to talk with my friend Kami yesterday about her new approach to creative living since the new year. In the past, she has taken her New Year's ritual of making resolutions seriously, seeing them as an opportunity to be different and have a fresh beginning, a time to reinvent! This year however, she was feeling the need to dive in a bit deeper and connect with her spirit in a life transforming way. It did not take long for her to hear the call, a call to focus on one thing, sink into it, and be present to the opportunities that come from living with a single purpose. From there it was clear to her that "Simplicity" was what she is most wanting more of in her life, so January became her month to focus on this word, embody the meaning of it, and live the intention of it daily!
Here we are in mid-February and Kami is on to something! She tells me that she spent January clearing out the clutter in her life, and then leaving those spaces in her home and mind clear to enjoy the extra time it provided, and savoring the freedom. By not buying anything all month, except for food and gas, she found her self lighter and more relaxed. It allowed her to avoid mindlessly filling the cleared spaces again through old habits she has come to learn do not nurture her. She says, "everything I bring into the house needs to be taken care of, so now I have to just love it (to bring it in)!" Each day the flow of living simply allowed her new discoveries and deeper meaning in her choices. "I had more time, focused inward not outward. If we (family) are always going to the mall we focus on what we don't have, instead of whats right here." Her moments with her family became richer as space cleared for new opportunities and creative time together. She found herself saying "YES" to opportunities in ways as a working mom, would not have been possible just a month earlier and would have added stress, but now bring her joy!
Kami's biggest discovery through her January journey was the enlightening reality that "by focusing on what you want, not on what you don't want, you feel happy!" As January came to a close, she realized that "sinking" into a word and living it intentionally is something she would like to continue. This has given way to her new word: LOVE, embracing it as a natural choice for February. As she begins living her new word she finds herself a bit unsettled and asking "What do you do?", but already the magic is unfolding and February is being filled with LOVE in very unexpected ways! Kami says she focuses on the person in front of her, thinks of others before herself, and allows her choices to adapt to LOVE as the priority. Already she finds people responding positively and generally nicer to her. The influence rubs off on others as she laughs saying, "One workmate the other day even yelled back as he was leaving a meeting I was in, "I Love You Guys!" and she spontaneously yelled back "I Love You Too!", something that would not have happened before in her work day, "It feels abundant!"
I am inspired, and I hope you are too! It is a wonderful idea that Kami plans to continue indefinitely and maybe even turn into a book someday. A tool to a deeper way of living...
"Ever since happiness heard your name, it has been running through the streets trying to find you."
~ Hafir from Persia
(Photo by K. Deanne, Flickr)
~ Come Gather Around The Table!
