This morning while I was sipping my coffee and scrolling through Facebook, I noticed a humor post that stated, “Glad I didn’t waste my money on buying a 2020 planner” which was similar to one I had seen about a month ago. Yep. All those cancelled plans and ones that remain on the books but with uncertainty. I understand. I feel like we all get it. But how are we allowing ourselves to be flexible and accept change?
After hitting up the fairy deck and asking, “What guidance do I need most right now?” I saw the recurring word.
Now.
I used “now” in my inquiry, and “now” echoed in two of the cards. I heard Sam Harris reminding us, “It is always now.” Even though he speaks about death and how life is fleeting, he makes points about what we do with our time and what we cared about “when life was normal”. At the moment, we’re shifting to a new normal because of a novel virus.
Carrying the advice from yesterday’s card, The Chariot, which was the nudge I needed to finish Rise, I grabbed my Passion Planner. When I opened it to the daily pages for this week, I had nothing written anywhere. Again, The Chariot made sense – I need my planner to help me with self-discipline, setting goals, and crushing the fuck out of said goals.
“A goal without a plan is just a wish.”
– Antoine de Saint-Exupery
I flipped to the section that has my monthly pages, and that’s when everything clicked.
Every.
Fucking.
Thing.
Clicked.
- I bought the undated Passion Planner in January 2020, so I could set it up to begin in February. Being the slacker that I am, I didn’t write in it until February, so I made the first month March.
- I felt a little sad looking at the “cancelled” sticker over the “Places To Go” box and the “People to See” who I didn’t get to see in March.
- I turned to April and giggled over “People to See” – oh hell no, “Places to Go” – fuck. this. shit., and Not To-Do List – an airplane sticker. Even the “salty as fuck” sticker in the first block made me smile.
- I wrote deletion edits over my brother’s gigs that were cancelled, and when I went to do the same in May, I noticed the repeated stickers in April and May. Birthdays. In both months, I also had identified the dates of the full moon and new moon.
Birthdays… Another trip around the sun. Full moons… Letting go of what doesn’t serve us… New moons… Manifesting our dreams…
We may not be able to count on making plans with others or being able to attend events that were on the calendar, but the dates of birthdays, full moons, and new moons will not change. I’ve had no changes to what I do for full moons and new moons, so now I face, “How will we celebrate birthdays?”
Among the upcoming birthdays in my family, my two favorite Marines have milestone birthdays – 21 and 50. Social distancing will affect our ability to host the typical gatherings, but technology will allow us to celebrate together. However, how do we get to the heart of honoring someone on his birthday?
I feel certain that now is the time for us in different ways and levels to step back and discover what it truly means to celebrate whether it’s a birthday, marriage, or any life event that has a get-together attached to it. Is a substitute available for quality time? What ways can we be inventive in getting to the heart of the celebration and trying something new? Why are we so set on what’s familiar and comfortable? How do we honor traditions in new ways?
Just like the birthdays and phases of the moon, something else is constant – my passion.
When I decided to get a smaller size Passion Planner, I had no conscious clue about the timing. I still had room for February, March, and April in the old planner, but I needed a fresh start. I needed to get away from everything that I scribbled out from my head, so I could make plans led by my heart. One of the great parts of a new planner besides all the clean pages is I cannot easily look at what I wrote down before – before I started tuning into my heart and before COVID-19 invaded every bit of our lives.
I didn’t realize starting a new planner would be in line with social distancing [although right now I feel less like it changed my plans but more like it affirmed the divine orchestration. I find myself having regular “trust falls” with the universe, and each one not only builds my trust but also elevates me to a new level of clarity].
Social distancing has really, reeeeeeally turned things upside down in some way for almost everyone I know – in their daily routines and their plans. At the moment, I do not personally know anyone who has tested positive for COVID-19 which of course would be the biggest way of changing plans.
A handful of my friends are (or were if the event has been cancelled) in the midst of training for events in their fitness passions. They are a beautiful example of resiliency. They have faced challenges with staying on their meal plans due to unavailable items at grocery stores. They haven’t been able to workout at the gym due to closings. However, I feel so happy for them when I see them doing their best to stay on track. They are so committed to their passions and their goals and have been flexible with changing their plans.
We may not be able to execute plans as we thought we should, but when we face the reality that is staring us in the face, we could choose to feel miserable, lamenting how shit should be going and resisting change OR we could choose to let go of the old and do our best to create new plans for meeting the goals of our passions. Choose wisely. Choose kindly. Choose what matters most to you.
What we think is the future can change on any day and at any time. So take a moment now to breathe. Listen to your heart beat. Remember your purpose. Be kind to yourself so you can be kinder to others. Thank yourself for being compassionate with yourself. Allow yourself to feel grateful for one good thing from your day. If more than one good thing comes to mind, feel blessed.
If you’re anything like me, you’ll already be on to the next thing and won’t make time to do it, so…
Do it now.
Breathe.
Be kind.
Be compassionate.
Feel gratitude.
Feel blessed.
Feel grateful to be at home.
Be a peacemaker.
Give mercy.
Receive grace.
Rise.
Now that you have you honored yourself, make it so with others.
Luceat lux vestra.