Day 30: Reaching the finish line

Sunrise at Monument Valley

Made it! I reached Day 30 of this transformational exercise.


For 30 days, joining a small group of other writers, authors, artists and other creative types gathering at QuinnCreative.com, I engaged in meditative walks (sometimes it was a bike ride, sometimes it was yoga, sometimes it was just getting lost in the quiet space of home) and journal writing. I then blogged about the process here, but not blog daily, which was the original agreement. You can clearly see the days I missed by checking the right-hand side of this page. I also felt resistance on more than one day and avoided writing in the journal at all--highly unusual for me, as I live by the journal. To me, that meant there would revelations to uncover and things to figure out. I wasn't afraid of that, but it seems I did have some resistance, maybe even some anger (at myself). But I made it to the finish line, and I am pleased.

Three Things I Learned From This Exercise: 

_IT'S GOOD TO PRACTICE LETTING THINGS GO
I learned to forgive myself, to be kind to myself, to let things go. Normally, in an exercise like this I want to do it all, and I want to do it all perfectly. I learned to be okay with imperfection or the idea that I might not do everything as expected. I can be okay with what is good enough. This is a good lesson for someone who comes back in to edit out that extra line or space or the misplaced comma in a blog post. I am learning to let those things be what they are. Would you really notice an extra space in a sentence? Would you care? Studies show people generally read right over such mistakes in copy, so that's something to remember if you catch yourself editing that minor error in your next post. Let it go.

_IT'S BETTER TO DEAL, RATHER THAN IGNORE, THOSE PESKY ISSUES
I have issues. Who doesn't, right? Seriously. OMG! I have issues. BUT, I'm more than willing to work on them. At least when I'm not resisting. I am willing to face truths that I'd prefer to ignore. I am willing to accept my failures and take away something from these experiences that will help me do something different or better the next time--if there's a next time. I am willing to accept there might not be, that I may suffer consequences. I have issues, yes, but I am not afraid to face them so I can detach and grow. I am enough. Remember that post?

_IT'S BEST TO BE OPEN TO CHANGE
Some people I know think I am no good with change. But, thankfully, I know myself better. I'm very adaptable, fairly flexible, and I can go with the flow. That doesn't mean I like or want to embrace change that hurts or somehow makes me feel uncomfortable. But I can accept the inevitable (in time, if that's what it takes) and figure out ways to deal with it. This exercise just reinforced what I know about myself, and that's a good thing for someone who's been playing in the sandbox of uncertainty. Change can bring you back to who you really are inside, and I am definitely open to that.