Our Choices Are Our Opportunities

[Taken in Bournemouth, UK :: February 2008]

Beliefs about the best way to walk through life are a funny thing.  I find that no matter how grand or mundane mine are, they share a similar trajectory.  They first find their way into my consciousness - maybe I see an example of how I want to live my life (or how I don't) or perhaps I read something that sings to me in a book.  From there I make the choice to embrace the belief, and a mantra of sorts begins to guide me through any number of situations.  Sometimes a belief clicks into place immediately, but most of the time it takes a while for it to become truly embedded in my day to day life.  And it isn't terribly uncommon for me to slip into negative patterns, reactions and mindsets along the road of trying to turn a belief into something much more fundamental:  Who I am, and how I live my life. 

What I have learned is that if I truly want to embrace a certain way of living and being in this world, I must always be cognizant of the impact of my choices, for they are the stepping stones to the wide open space of light I want to be in as much as possible.  And by light I mean a clear conscious that is free of all the strangely alluring, ego-centered, emotional strings that are capable of yanking me into a downward spiral if I'm not vigilant.  I have learned that when I make a commitment to be a certain way, shift a certain story or remove certain patterns and dynamics from my life, I am presented with countless opportunities to put those values into play.  And every time these opportunities fall into my lap, I am free to make whatever choice I want to make.  It isn't uncommon for my ego and emotions to try to pull me away from the light I seek - to keep telling the story of how I was hurt or wronged, to communicate from a place of fear - but when I stay focused on who I really want to be, the choices become very easy.  Do I want to talk a big talk about who I want to be or do I want to simply be who I want to be?

With each new tenet that I decide to enfold into my life, it feels like I start with a lot of loose threads, and all the opportunities I get to put these beliefs and values into action provide me with the means to weave them together and tie them securely along the edges.  What is so amazing and gratifying is to make the choice to step into the light - to take those opportunities to tie a little knot here and a little knot there - and then suddenly all that effort is rewarded with a profound sense of wholeness, clarity and light.  The splinter that was stuck in my finger for months suddenly slides out; the stain that kept appearing on my shirt finally washes away.  After telling myself 999 times "A + B = C", on that one thousandth repeat, that piece of knowledge finally rolls around in my brain one last time before it sinks right down into my gut, where it clicks firmly into place for good.  This doesn't mean I am infallible, that I won't still drift or wander or react, but it means I'll be able to find my way back to the light much quicker. 

I know I used a lot of metaphors in that last paragraph, but they all fit.  They all represent a process that has served me incredibly well.  But this process only works if I am willing to make the choices that will serve whatever ideals, standards and beliefs I aim to embody, knowing it might take a hundred tiny choices before I fully experience the effects of my efforts in the form of wholeness, clarity and light.  And:  Joy.

Our choices are our opportunities - to grow, to release, to evolve.  They are seeds that create a garden, threads that make a quilt, bricks that form a foundation, stars that sparkle on our darkest nights, showing us the way home. 

Comments

[Angela Anderson]

well said!!

[Claire]

Hello Christine, I am new to your blog, but the line that Pixie quotes:

"Do I want to talk a big talk about who I want to be or do I want to simply be who I want to be? "

mirrors my internal dialogue at the moment too. I shall carry these words with me until they really sink in too!

Thanks for your words today

With love,

Claire

http://recoveringamethyst.wordpress.com/

[Di]

Yes! Perfectly described :)

I'm on location in Berlin for 2 months, photographically documenting an exhibition here in the city and I think of you and your work surprisingly often as I wander through the construction of it all. Seeing artworks arriving, wondering what your take on it might be and being reminded of your work... It's nice to be able to call by and visit, finding comfort there in your words.
xo

[gina armfield]

I couldn't agree more and so aptly and beautifully put - now the hard part for me is being fully conscience to walk the talk and to remember when I stumble that I can always get up and keep walking - thanks for the reminder

[amy]

beautiful, wise words. thank you. i love the fact that they are aspirational and patient at the same time.

[linni]

"to keep telling the story of how I was hurt or wronged, to communicate from a place of fear - but when I stay focused on who I really want to be, the choices become very easy. Do I want to talk a big talk about who I want to be or do I want to simply be who I want to be?"

'communicate from a place of fear'...punch.

Wow! breathing out...learning new things everyday...doing things I thought i would never do because 'i'm not that kind of person'....oh Swirly! wish i could come for tea and get advice! :-)

This goes parallel with something a friend told me - whenever you want to use the word 'but', just stop there, don't say what you want to say, because then everything you said before the but does not count anymore. ...

Communicating from a place of fear...
When you reclaim your strength. Strength reclaims you.

This is what i need to do.

THANK YOU!!!! xx

[Thea]

knowing it might take a hundred tiny choices before I fully experience the effects of my efforts in the form of wholeness, clarity and light. And: Joy.

brilliant

namaste dear one

xoxoxo

[Jill Nalette]

oh my gosh!! I want to hug you and say thank you for getting it and writing it. It makes me feel less alone in this HUGE world, but makes me think maybe it's not that HUGE at all. YOUR brilliant!!
hugs ans smiles~ jill from n.h.
nalettejm@yahoo.com

[mccabe]

i think your next project should be:
affirmation cards!!
cause i love all ya say.
:)

xoxoxo
mccabe

[doorways traveler]

you are really f*#*ing smart, you know that? like really, soulfully, deeply, intuitively, outstandingly, spiritually, sparkling smart.

biggest sigh ever. you get it. thanks for explaining what i've been trying define for myself over and over and over again.

LOVE.

[kathryn]

thanks for putting all of my thoughts of late into a great post!

[melba]

Yes! I totally get this whole post.
Thank you ~ I needed to hear this today.

[Denise]

"Our choices are our opportunities - to grow, to release, to evolve."

...so simple, so true.

[Shazeea]

A friend of mine sent me a post of yours last year when I was in a very rough spot (http://swirlygirl.typepad.com/swirly_girl/2007/10/shelter.html). Some time later I subscribed to your feed through Google Reader. These days I'm so busy (I'm a third year med student) that I just look at your photos.

When I saw the above photo I thought of only one place. Then I thought it's not possible...I'm sure there are plenty of coastlines that look like that with beach shacks like that. Then I looked at the location.

I spent December 2008 in Bournemouth with my aunt, uncle and 4 cousins between the ages of 8 to 9 months. One afternoon we went to the beach and I took a similar photo (http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-sf2p/v647/137/92/503140603/n503140603_5656078_3784.jpg).

It's nice knowing that I don't know you and you don't know me, but I read what you write and we've walked on the same ground.

[pixie]

"Do I want to talk a big talk about who I want to be or do I want to simply be who I want to be?"

I think I know the answer to this question....

:) lovely, girl.