I woke up this 9/11 and saw the sky from my bedroom window. Gloomy, Overcast. Hmmm seemed to fit the mood of remembrance for the day. I knew there would be flags hung at half mast today… there would be the reading of the names and firefighters standing at full salute outside their houses at 8:46 and 9:03 this morning. There is a beautiful new remembrance garden that was going to be dedicated this morning in my neighborhood. I have found it in recent days to be a good place to contemplate, to be quietly and to reconnect with myself and the bigger meaning of my life, my work and what I am called to do.
Some of you know that I had the honor of working at the World Trade Center for the Port Authority of NY & NJ long before this happened and way before I became a health coach. It was an amazing experience to work on top of the world with the familiar sway of the building and the Fuji blimp floating by our windows every day– the pilot waving to us all. This crossroads of the world and international finance was a crossroad for me. It was a stop on my journey where I met so many lovely people and enjoyed and excelled at my work so much that I was offered a position on a management track there. I was tempted but decided to pursue going back to school and left shortly thereafter. Talk about a decision that could be life altering.
I don’t think about what if.. because our lives are filled every day with what if… What if I am in the wrong place at the wrong time? What if I get sick or get cancer? What if I lose someone close to me? What if I can’t say exactly how my life will go and control is just an illusion. Here is the truth. It is.
We cannot live our lives for what if. Today this moment is all we have. We need to live in the direction of our dreams. That pursuit is the journey.. and therein lies the best of us. The destination and the goal is lovely, but the journey tells the world what we are really made of… Our passion, our integrity, our willingness to risk, to surrender and to be vulnerable.
As coaches, this is the business we are in. We are witness to the Journey of those individuals who are brave enough to move in the direction of their dreams, to live their lives as though they really matter because they do. And as we co-journey along side them (and we must) we follow that same path.
On a bright September morning there were so many people who were living in the direction of their dreams personal and professional who were called on at great cost to those left behind. We are reminded every day since. In NYC, you cannot walk a few blocks without seeing a “Never Forget” sign or bumper sticker. Street signs are often doubled up with the original name of the street and the new honorary name of a fallen hero. In New York, other reminders this past week of fear of repeat events and as other threats also loom in the world… The subways and buses were swarming with police, checking bags and patrolling on high alert. Everywhere you go you are reminded… “If you see something, say something.”
This is what I see, so I am going to say it. Find calm and peace in your heart every day. Connect to your source whatever that is for you. Those of us who are sensitive to the energies of the world and the fear and chaos that is waiting to enter our very beings need to take especially good care of ourselves. Whatever your spiritual practice or path, try to emanate a stream of love and light into the world.
We work hard to nourish ourselves, our loved ones, our clients and our communities on so many levels with the intention of healing the planet. That healing begins with us. Let yourself not be depleted or lose hope because of fear of any kind!
Dare to live in the direction of your dreams. They were gifted to you for a reason. They matter and so do you.
Going Quantum With You… Marilena
