Source: https://divination.com/iching/lookup/64-2/

It’s Sunday morning – okay, by now it’s late Sunday morning, because I’ve been reading the paper, doing one of the word puzzles, drinking my tea and basically taking my time and enjoying my Sunday morning. On a whim, I decided to check my I Ching reading for the day (on ifate.com, in case you’re interested, because it’s FREE). It’s an interesting read, to say the least.

The Goal Achieved?

I recently (and finally) relocated back home. I got the he** out of California and don’t miss it at all, especially since wildfire season is in full swing. I do miss the Meyer lemons, though. Imagine a lemon sweet enough to suck on and delicious enough to make the best lemony desserts. (Note: it was mated with a mandarin back in the late 1800s by a man from China; some guy named Fred Meyer then brought it to the U.S.)

But I digress…

It was a rocky relocation and I’m being kind when I say that. For example, the moving company somehow managed to not pack a single stitch of my clothing or any of my bedding into the UBox that was shipped 3,500 miles to my new (old) home. That and some other challenges have taken up much of the last 5-6 weeks to resolve (me and my clothes have since been re-united) and my stress level has been way too high for way too long. Hence this long, quiet, and relaxing Sunday morning…I need it.

Sometimes the hexagram readings are spot-on with what’s currently happening. Other times, you have to really think about how it relates to your life currently or in the near future. Today, it was spot-on and it opened my eyes, especially the last two paragraphs. Talk about prophetic…

Going Up

“The situation represented by this reading can be compared to taking a lengthy trek over a high mountain. At some point before reaching the peak, you can see—in detail—exactly how much farther you have to travel. You will have a good idea of what it will take to reach the top, because of the climbing experience you’ve accumulated thus far. However, when you do reach the peak (which has been in sight for quite a long period of sustained effort), you will have done only that. You will have reached the top and achieved your initial goal, but you still must descend the other side. This last critical segment is what remains before completion.”

~ From Divination.com by the Divination Foundation

With all the planning I did while still in CA (emails, phone calls, security deposit that got delayed, etc.), I could finally see that goal – I was going home. But it was all I could see. Or would see, to be truthful. I was obsessed with getting to the top, reaching what I thought was the whole goal. I was wrong…

Then Down

After a few minutes of contemplation, this came to me: I’m finally here. I’ve reached the pinnacle of the mountain (the goal to come home). But now I must go down the other side to complete this journey. Going down is usually much easier, though there may still be challenges along the way.

The second paragraph struck me in a way that opened my eyes to a long pattern of only keeping my eye on the pinnacle, the goal at the top/end, and not the whole journey, which includes going down the other side of the mountain to complete the goal/cycle (I added the bold and italics):

“Consider, too, the possibility that you have little information and no experience of what it’s like descending the other side of the mountain, because all your attention has been focused on the path going up. The coming situation may seem very strange to you—unlike anything that you have experienced before—but the other side of the mountain is where the true mysteries reside. Proceed carefully, cautiously, and alertly; and you will arrive honorably at the completion of your goal.”

~ From Divination.com by the Divination Foundation

Revelation (of Something Missed)

OMG. You mean there’s more?

Of course there is. What goes up, must come down, remember? All these years I’ve only been focused on a part of the goal, thinking it was the whole goal the whole time. How wrong I was.

Getting here was only a part of the goal, not a completion of the goal. Now that I think about it, it makes sense. I still have work to do. I’m home and yet I’m not – not yet, anyway. I’m at a stopping-off place along the way, along the journey to my goal of coming home. I’m close but I’m not yet finished. The goal is not complete. But it will be, because now I know to watch my step as I climb down from the top of that mountain and into my new (old) life here at home.

Safe travels to all who dare that climb up. Don’t forget to climb down!

#mestengobooks #reading #awakening #reachinggoals #home #life #writeroninstagram #travel #adventure #risktaking #divination #iching #contemplation #settinggoals #journey

Now that the holidays are (finally) over, we writers can get back to work (or at least I can, since I seem to have taken too long a holiday from it). As a result of busily working two jobs for the last several months, my writing outside of this blog has all but disappeared and I madly desire to get back on track. My imagination craves an outlet for the myriad scenarios running amok in my mind. But first I need to whittle it all down to a doable list of projects.

That new nutrition book, for example; you know, the one with the first few chapters already completed? Probably going to make its way to the Recycle Bin on my laptop; it was one of the works I referenced in Lay Your Past to Rest. I’ve decided there are already some excellent books out on that very topic, so why try to compete with them? They’re written by successful colleagues with more than twenty-five years of practice under each of their belts (I have less than twelve). What could I possibly say that they haven’t? What would you do?

I’m even re-vamping my workshop. I decided a fresh approach is needed to draw more people in for the all-day class. What’s my inspiration? Boredom, mostly, with the “same-old, same-old”. Time to breathe new life into a stagnant one. Throw out the old, bring in the new, right?

Has your writing become a bit stale as of late? With a whole new year upon us, perhaps it’s time to take a writing inventory to decide what’s still working and what’s not. I like writing nonfiction, but I realized I prefer fiction – more freedom of expression, which to me, is far better (and more fun).

“When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.” ~ Confucius

Where to find inspiration for our writing this new year? With a new presidency almost upon us, I feel we will not be lacking for parody material…it’s as if the situation demands it. There’s a lot going on out there in our big world. How can we be heard? How can we stand out? As always, we must create in a way that is best for each of us, not in a way that someone else thinks is right. Which is why I’m cutting back on following various groups on LinkedIn (and other sites) – it’s information overload. In this new year I wish to simplify my life a bit more. Avoiding frivolous junk news will surely increase the amount (and quality) of work I produce, simply because there will be less interference from trivial events that have no bearing on my life.

Perhaps in this new year we writers can decide to live more simply to create more fully. With less interruptions, we can better focus on what’s important: telling our stories.

“Writing is an escape from a world that crowds me. I like being alone in a room. It’s almost a form of meditation- an investigation of my own life. It has nothing to do with – I’ve got to get another play.” ~ Neil Simon