“It is not surprising, then, that though we feel intermittently gifted, our gifts are ever-present. For if enlightenment stems from clarity of being, then talent is no more than a clarity of doing, an embodied moment where spirit and hand are one. The chief obstacle to talent, then, is a lapse of being. It is not that people have no talent, but that we lack the clarity to uncover what it is and how it works. Talent, it seems, is energy waiting to be released through an honest involvement in life.” – Mark Nepo, The Book of Awakening
Each morning when I ground myself in quiet and reading something good, the day is set no matter what will come. One of my current favorites is Mark Nepo’s The Book of Awakening. And the days when I rush through too “busy” to do this, my day is set as well, in chaos.
The day’s circumstances, people and challenges are always present but when I anchor my mind, I can see beyond the three ring circus and know that life and who I am is so much more than mere circumstances. An old Polish proverb is a good reminder to not be defined by the crazy makers or to join them – “Not my circus, not my monkeys.”
We can choose calm and light by leaving our ego (I deserve, I demand, I need) at the door and focusing on what we can contribute to make things better and to simply enjoy the day we are given. We can control of our thoughts, actions, reactions and attitude. And more than just trying to remove the negative, we need to replace that void in our thoughts with inspiration, ideas, dreams, plans and aspirations. We are all called to go deeper to find and be so much more. Set your day, set your life.