Lamisha Serf-Walls

I Am Listening…

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This week has been one of those weeks, yet again.  It seems like time is speeding up and the number of things that must get done are adding up too and while I could very well freak out about what isn’t getting done, or get anxious about the long list, I am not.  Thanks to my meditation practice, I am staying pretty balanced in my mood and doing what I can each day.  With that said, I am human and I still recognize there is much to be done this week, but right now, I am simply listening.

I am listening to my body, my mind, and my inner voice and letting it guide me through my days.  My body is saying “rest” and I am sure it means I need more sleep.  And though I know I could stay up to get through the last few chapters of a book I am reading so I can get some writing done for it, I will not.  I will listen, and sleep.  My mind is telling me to step back, slow down, and breathe.  So I am.  I have taken far more deep breaths today than I can remember in the last week, simply to focus and center myself.  I am listening.

My inner voice seems to have a lot to say about all the “busyness” that is going on this week.  “Let it go. ”  “It’s not worth it.” “It can wait.”  This voice is gently guiding me to do what is best for me right now and to take care of myself and I am listening.  My inner voice is also providing an unlimited number of creative ideas that I truly can’t wait to begin.  When will that be? I am not sure, but one thing I know is that as long as I am listening and following the little nudges here and there, it will all come together in the right time and space for me.  Until then, I am listening.

What do you need to listen to right now?

Gratitude: Positive Intentions & Meditation Challenge

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This week I have seen a lot of wonderful posts on various blogs and on Facebook about new goals and intentions for the year ahead.  I must admit, these posts inspire me and though I know resolutions don’t likely last past the first month of the year, I love seeing many of my friends and family members so positive about the year ahead.  As for myself, I am still mulling over my letter to my future self and processing in my mind and my heart what I truly want for the year ahead.  In the meantime, I have taken on another challenge to assist me in my theme for the year.

I didn’t write about this challenge when I decided to take it on simply because I wasn’t quite sure I would be able to do it and to be honest, there is a part of me that still wonders if I will be able to complete it, however I am taking it one day at a time.  The challenge is to meditate daily for 100 days in a row.  This challenge is unlike anything I have ever done before considering I have found it difficult to commit to meditating just 2 days in a row, but I thought it would help me remain grounded as I move throughout the year.  For the last 4 days that I have been meditating, it has worked.

Today I am grateful for positive intentions and my mediation practice.  The positive intentions I am witnessing help me to maintain a positive outlook for my year ahead.  My meditation practice helps me to stay within the current moment and to simply be here.  Together they help me reach a balance that I haven’t had before.

A balance between my present and future that allow me to stand equally with one foot on each side.  I am inspired by what the future may hold, but open to the moment I have right now.  Balance, a type of balance I haven’t felt until now.

What are you grateful for this week?

End of Year Tradition: Letter to Future-Self

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Last year I was reading through various inspirational blogs and found several that discussed different new year traditions.  One tradition was mentioned on not one, but two blogs and I was intrigued enough to try it out.  The concept was presented first on Jess Lively’s blog and then again on the When I Grow Up Coach blog and after reading both, I couldn’t contain my excitement and decided to try it out.

The basic concept is to write a letter to your future self describing and reflecting on the coming year as if it has already happened.  When I completed my letter for the first time at the beginning of this year, I was so excited to start.  I had many visions of what I wanted to accomplish and I included everything from the writing opportunities I wanted to obtain, to the way I wanted to decorate my house.  After I had written the letter, I tucked it away only to be read twice in the coming year.  Once about 6 months out and then again at the end of the year.  I (not so) patiently waited for all of my dreams to come true.  Unfortunately they didn’t come true in the way I thought they would.

Some of the items did materialize for 2012, but looking back on it, I realize my focus was very rigid.  I wanted very specific things to happen and when they didn’t, I found myself very frustrated and I wondered if the whole “future letter” was a waste of time.  Now that we have reached the end of 2012 and I am contemplating writing the letter again, I have decided that I will indeed write it again, but I suspect that it will have a bit of a different feel to it.

Instead of setting mostly rigid expectations for the year ahead, I am going to be a bit more balanced in my approach.  And considering my theme for the year ahead is to “be open” to whatever may come, I believe I will not only be able to handle whatever comes my way, but I also hope that many more dreams in my letter will come to fruition.

So, during the first week of 2013, I will once again sit down to write a letter to myself describing 2013 as if it was coming to an end.  I look forward to getting my thoughts on paper and dreaming big for the year ahead, but if all of my dreams don’t come to pass, then I know I will be open to whatever comes in it’s place.

If you were going to write a letter to yourself what would you include in your reflection of 2013?

Follow The Joy

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Last month I read a post from Jess Lively that really inspired me.  I put the thought into my mental memory bank for later retrieval and after the last two days of my day job I was reminded of this post about a concept of “pretiring”.  Check out her post here.

Jess discusses how she plans to give herself permission each day to do things that she enjoys and to follow her heart to what feels good.  My initial thought was…”you can do that?”.  As I thought about it more, it made so much sense to me.  How different would your world look if you followed your intuition/gut/spidey senses and did the things that made you feel good even just a little bit.  I am a realistic person much more than I like to admit, and the reality for me is that I have a family to help support and I can’t just up and quit my day job to follow my heart.  But I can begin feeling out my writing gigs and only responding to the ones the resonate with me.  I can only write the things that feel natural and organic, and not try to fit into any one box.  The truth is, I don’t belong in a box, I like to wear far too many hats to sit in one place for too long.

I have been inspired to begin doing more things that feel right as opposed to the things I feel I should do, although there are many shoulds that I can’t get away from.  (I should get up for work to pay the bills until my side gigs turn into something that can support myself and my family etc. )

I have read a lot about following your heart and fulfilling your life purpose and from what others are saying, the more you do that authentically, the more you will see opportunities come into focus and you allow your path to unfold for you.  It is at this point that your life’s work doesn’t feel like work, it feels like joy.  So, I am doing just that.  Doing the things that feel good and bring me joy.  What a concept right?

**Disclaimer** Do not be fooled by fear.  Fear has a funny way of making something feel wrong when really it is just trying to limit what you are doing. I too have to be careful when fear comes around because I often mistake it for my gut telling me that something isn’t right, when in actuality it is trying to keep me where I am.  Use your judgement and feel how fear feels for yourself.  It may be different for everyone, but I urge you not to let a fear of failure to stop you from moving towards your dreams.

So, what if you did more of what feels right to you and followed your joy more?  What would your life look like?  I am sure it would look (and feel) much different from how it does now.  I invite you to do something each day that inspires you, excites you, and lights the flame of desire for your dreams.  The more you do, the more you will find to be excited about.  I’d love to hear what you plan on doing more of!

Being Ok With Things Unfinished

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With the holidays lurking just around the corner, I feel like there is so much to do and not enough time to complete everything.  In the last few weeks, I have felt like I am playing a lot of catch-up on work stuff, personal stuff, and holiday stuff.  When I begin to feel like things are unfinished, I have to just….breathe.

I am one of those people who enjoys being busy, but only when I am actually getting things accomplished.  I love looking at my to do list and seeing that it is DONE.  Very rarely do I actually accomplish everything on my list, so I often find myself in a constant state of things unfinished, but it doesn’t stop great feeling of putting a check mark next to the things that are complete.

In this process of lists, intentions, and often frustrating circumstances of many, (many) things being undone, I am learning that I can’t do it all, all of the time.  The reality is that I can’t do everything that I want to be done in one day, and very rarely can I get it all done in a week.  Life happens and with a 2-year old, two homes, two dogs, a full-time job, and my midnight hustle (a fun way to say my freelance writing work), life happens A LOT!  So, I may never get it all done, and sometimes I might have to say no to a couple of things for my sanity, but I am learning (yay!), that it is ok.

You don’t get an extra reward for rushing through life doing, doing, doing, you get the most out of life from simply being. So as I venture into my evening with a crippling list of to-do’s, I’m going to intentionally let some things go, because I would much rather indulge in a little bit of down-time, than stress about what I can’t get done.

What is left unfinished in your world that you are ok with, if even for the moment?