Well, I’m on my way! I’m operating on about four hours’ sleep, but that’s part of the adventure!
The 5:50 a.m. flight departing from Prescott Regional Airport went without a hitch. It was nice to be at a small airport again, reminiscent of the days when my private pilot friend and I would fly from Islip, Long Island, NY to have dinner in Nantucket, RI; venture down to the Bahamas and explore cays that were not accessible to visitors flying commercially; and a host of other adventures (or mishaps as the case may be).
Here I now sit in Denver International Airport waiting for the next puddle jumper—well, not really—flight to my final destination, Grand Junction. There awaits a week of fun and connection with my dearest friend, Esther, and her wife. We plan to go tube kayaking on the Colorado River; meet with their numerous friends; attend a CSL Sunday service; play Mexican Train; celebrate my birthday; and, most unexpectedly, go house hunting! … which leads me to the main topic of today’s blog post: gratitude. Gratitude for how far I’ve come.
After getting a little rest on my flight from Prescott to Denver, it started registering with me where I was in the present moment. I reflected on where I was on my way to, and I was overcome with gratitude for how far I’ve come.
Aside from COVID which stopped life for two-plus years, now I can afford to travel, something I’d not been able to spend money on for a long time (and prices were lower then!). I was going to see my dearest friend, Esther, who I’ve not seen since she relocated about nine months ago; we’ve deepened our friendship via daily Whats App message conversations, and speaking weekly via Zoom/Skype for an hour. A week of fun and laughter, away from work, refreshment for my soul. I felt such gratitude for the richness of it all. And, to learn yesterday that I qualify to buy a home priced at $400K due to my once again excellent credit scores and my great income—this was unimaginable seven years ago when I was still in my own business. Esther remembers when I couldn’t afford to go out for lunch; prior to that there were even more dire circumstances, like not having a place to hang my hat.
How far I’ve come from most of the stubbornness that made me stay in my consulting business, in a business model that was not financially viable and I wouldn’t change, a detriment to my well-being even if I got to be creative, learn, meet new people, and make my own schedule. After some transformational work, I was finally open to Spirit’s guidance, that it was time to let it go and head back to the Big City (from Sedona to Phoenix), the corporate world, and work a job for steady income. I deserved to be financially prosperous and if my current way wasn’t working, then there had to be another way.
I’ve come a long way financially, but I know that it’s not just about money in a material sense. It is so about relationships, with myself, others, and Spirit. I used to live in constant fear and hence couldn’t be my whole, authentic self. Now I enjoy an inner calmness and I have more to share and give others. My heart is touched with gratitude, when I see where the journey has led me, when I see how far I’ve come. What an adventure—and it’s not over yet!
Thank You, Spirit!
For me personally, as the pandemic wore on, the nature of work and job locations changed, leaving a permanent mark. I’d already been working remotely before the pandemic. However, as time went by, more jobs became available that were remote. Since I work a contract and knew mine would come to an end eventually, I assessed what the future would likely look like, i.e., would remote work be more of the norm and whether I’d be able to leave the Big City again for parts more rural and with a smaller population, and still be able to earn a livelihood. My guidance from Spirit was yes. And thus I ventured on to moving to my current locale; I have had two 100% remote job contracts in the year that I relocated.
“When we withdraw our opinions as to who people should be, we loosen our grasp and give ourselves the opportunity to know people for who they are. We are then free to truly know ourselves and share what we learn with others.
I certainly have had times when I just wanted to stay purely focused on Spirit and do nothing else in life. But for numerous reasons, especially my being the sole supporter of moi and not independently wealthy, I’ve had to step into the reality of human life and deal with it. Finding the balance means remembering Spirit as much as possible as I go about my daily life, and incorporating the Divine in my attitude and interactions towards people and situations.
Writing this blog focused on spirituality is a daily practice for me, one I kept for 598 days during the years 2008 –2010, and one I committed to again at the start of 2022 for a number of reasons.