Today is the new moon in Cancer. With Jupiter where it is, and Saturn where it is, and the planetary configuration of the moment - according to my astrology-savvy friends - it’s a super powerful moment to consider your “stories.”
I have to start this post with giving my dear best friends credit: they save me on a daily basis. They save me from myself, from my own crazy thinking. They offer unlimited love and support - as I do them in return. I don’t know where I’d be without them.
I messaged one of my dearest friends last week - in the middle of a moment of overwhelm - and asked, “What am I doing with my life? Am I just totally lost??”
I listed all of the big events of my last 2 years:
my relocation of my home base to Vermont while keeping a foot in Austin
the endless tasks of managing of a rather big property by myself
the dating - sometimes delicious, sometimes quite hard on the heart
my scrappiness as a business owner at Sparkle
LOTS of travel, some of which has been driven by spontaneous impulse
the struggle to center my days around my creativity
Not to mention the deep call to go to New Mexico! Plus the impulse to rent my house and spend the winter traveling! Or maybe I should stick with this summer’s commitment to root right here in Vermont and stay put?!?
She laughed and said, “Oh my gosh, the world is your OYSTER, friend! Your roots are so deep - nourishing you and everyone around you. Your branches and leaves are out there bravely feeling it all out, living fearlessly and fully, and soaking all of life up beautifully!”
Which one is true??
Whichever one I choose.
I say this over and over, and re-learn this over and over. The stories you tell about yourself and your life are powerful.
Even better: you get to choose.
Everything is story. Once you start to get that, you discover your own power in it. Perhaps all we need to do is tell the story we love the most. I’m starting think that’s true for our own lives, and also true for the planet. We’re telling stories all the time - about our people, about our situation, about this moment and the next, about what’s likely going to happen to us. And when you pair that with a brain that is wired to be fear-based, to protect us from harm, we can get into some pretty sad stories.
So how do you take hold of the narrative-reins?
I think it’s best to start with naming what you want for your life, and focusing on where it already exists. Give that the juice of appreciation. (Eg: I have so much love in my life! Look at it coming in from everywhere!) Journal out your ideal narrative for where you are right now, and where you are heading. Vision your highest story on a daily basis (this is what I do). You can add in affirmations. Or use growth mindset tools. Ask your friends to hold the highest story for you, and remind you of who you truly are and what’s possible for you. Whatever it takes! And practice practice practice.
The minute my buddy gave me the reframe, I knew she was right.
• I love packing up my things in a suitcase and heading off into a new experience, in which I get to learn things about the world and myself.
• I love being in Vermont - with the trees I talk to and the fields I walk, the bird and animal life, the porch I love to sit on. Tending the gardens here, and watching the land change over the seasons. The sweetness of my dear friends here, and my local community. I feel very grounded and alive here.
• I love being in Austin too - with my dear friends there, and all the vibrancy the city offers me. Austin is FUN. I feel very creative and dynamic there.
• I really enjoy meeting each new person - on dates or otherwise - getting to know another lovely human with their hurts and their happinesses. I know my beloved person will be here when the time is right.
• I work hard and I adore my freedom - to write, to travel, to expand or contract, to devote myself to my kids and my friends and my work, however that looks on a given day.
• I cherish my practices of embodiment and presence, and how it lights up my experience on this planet. Most days I feel a LOT and also very alive. (True abundance.)
But if I wanted to, I could decide it’s not linear enough. Not focused enough. Too risky. Not productive enough. Not in line with our culture’s definition of success. And I could feel extra bad - if I wanted to.
But I don’t.
Do I have everything I want right now? No. I’m still growing aspects of myself. I am learning to walk each day with faith in my heart and softness in my body. I am holding a bit of heartbreak, but in that heartbreak is desire, as well as a growing trust in love and possibility.
And here’s where I get to have an adventure story. Each day I get to watch the unfolding of myself and my wild little life. Each day I get to share love - for myself and with others - and I get to delight in the love coming back to me. Each day I get to see where my intuition and my creativity take me. I get to see what shows up, and how it shows up, and be curious about the doors that are opening. Each day I get to be grateful.
And that’s SUPER freaking fun.
What stories are living in you? What’s the very best story you could tell about your life, right now?
Let’s start telling that one. Today.
Big love.
Please feel free to share your thoughts and comments, either here or via email! I would love to know where you are with this, and hear your story if you want to share it. We can support each other.
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