9/15/14—Contemplating the Hard Questions

Symbolically, spring is the time of great renewal. But in my life, that time is autumn. I emerge from my cocoon, head into winter, which is a favorite season for me. Then when spring rolls around, it's a time of preparation to weather the long, miserable summer. 

So I dug up this classic post about feeling lackluster about your life or in a rut. That's often how I feel at the end of summer. And with autumn's energy sweeping in this past weekend, I thought I'd revisit some questions that can help us see a way out of the rut.

A sad fact of life is that we can everything we want and still not be happy. Sometimes it's because we're depressed. Or maybe you're someone who likes the process of creating something, but feels restless once the world is done. It could be for a lot of reasons. But more often than not, I'll bet, it's because the things you want and have aren't the things that make you happy. Or things that once made you happy no longer do so. 

I think we all feel that way now and again. I used to take a lot of interest in my tarot deck collection and card reading, for example, but those things just aren't calling to me anymore. And because we tend to grow and change over time, it's a good idea to take stock of ourselves now and again and ask questions like: 

• How have my values changed in the past five years or so and what in my life has not changed to greet those new values?
• What do I believe about who I am and what I deserve? How has that changed and do I act in alignment with those changes?
• What practices or actions no longer feel genuine or comfortable in my life?
• What drains my energy and what fuels it?
• Do I ever find myself doing something I used to not question, and now I wonder why I'm doing it?
• Are there behaviors or actions or attitudes I'm ashamed of...or feel it's time to let go of?
• What is missing in my life?*

These are just a few of the kinds of questions that are good to take time to ruminate on as we move toward our own personal "renewal". I know for a fact that we all know someone who hasn't changed their hair style in 30 years. I know this because I'm that person...haha. And sometimes we tend to do with our lives what some of us do with our hair...we tend to pick a course of action and stay on it until the bitter end. 

We rarely take the time to proactively examine who we are, who we want to be and what to clear out of our life to get it. Instead, we allow cobwebs and clutter to accumulate within our spirit and then end up like the guy who has everything but contentment. So if you're feeling that way, maybe take a look at who you are today and start living for that person instead. It can take time to figure out what kind of things "the new you" enjoys, but it can be an adventure all along the way. 

*This last question is almost always a trick question. The thing that is almost always missing is connection with "source", however you define that to be—a higher power, nature, whatever. Gratitude and meditation/prayer are the best ways to reconnect with our higher power, our significance, or mission and/or our role here on earth. While we often feel alone and powerless, the opposite is true at all times, whether we choose to embody that reality or not. May as well embody it. 

This post was adapted from one written October 18, 2012.