NOT GETTING
WHAT YOU WANT
It is one of those
beautiful rainy mornings, where the rain is so slight you have to
really look, or feel, to see if it is actually raining. It is. Mist
accompanies the rain, blocking out the mountain on the farm completely.
The birds are still singing. But the rain can't be heard on the tin
roof, as it is so fine. If it weren't summer, it would be the sort of
day you would want to stay inside all day by a fire.
It is lovely to be creating a relatively flexible lifestyle, where days like this can be embraced. My intention had been to go to town today. But after being there yesterday for a meeting and the general functioning of life, not getting a sunny day is a simple enough reason to excuse myself from heading out today.
It's not that one can't go to town in the rain. Of course it is possible. But I'd rather enjoy the beauty of the day and use the time more wisely from the cottage instead. Sometimes, often in fact, not getting what you want is a gift indeed (as previously mentioned in my article Wishes in the Wind).
When I think of the various desires I've had in my life and the way things have turned out, I am glad that I didn't get everything I thought I once wanted.
There have been times over the years when like most people, I am sure, I've been terribly disappointed about a particular outcome of something or another. Things didn't turn out as I'd hoped. But as life unfolded afterwards and the reasons became clearer as to why things didn't go the way that I thought I wanted, I realised the blessings that came as a result of that. (There is a sun shower out now, beautiful).
Recently, I was reminded of the gift in not getting what I thought I wanted. When things didn't unfold as I had initially hoped, a beautiful peace flowed through me soon after. It brought relief and trust. I didn't know what was coming instead of that event. But it didn't matter. My faith was strong enough to know that only good was unfolding. And perhaps it was this that brought the relief, rather than ongoing disappointment.
And sure enough, before too long, things became clearer as to why the other path would not have suited. In the end, it's about stepping out there, taking one step at a time, and trusting where each step leads. If there is a closed door in front of you that you can't open, then trust that it is closed for a reason. Sure, try to open it. But if it doesn't open, let go and find one that does. Or let go and wait.
Not getting what you want is often a gift in disguise. And while it may take some time to understand why that is, it is often worth the wait. A common element of things not coming my way, that I thought I wanted, is when I think my heart is in it, but it's not wholly and completely. It is when I am making compensations within myself, to make something happen. But they are compensations that would not be good for me in the long run. And even though my heart may be in the idea to a decent degree, if I am truly honest with myself, it is not in it completely. And sure enough, things don't flow naturally then.
And yet when my heart is truly into something, with total honesty and no compensations, things flow. Sometimes there are challenges to be overcome, sure. But either way, the strength is there to unblock those challenges. And then flow it does, beautifully.
Knowing the difference between overcoming a challenge and letting something flow, or acknowledging that something just doesn't want to flow, that the door to that direction is closed for a reason, comes down to listening to the heart, with total honesty.
So when things aren't flowing and you are not getting what you think you want, perhaps it is worth asking yourself do you truly want it? Are you making compensations to your heart's true desires by trying to force something to unfold that in the long run, may not be what you really want, if you are completely honest with yourself?
After all, not getting what you want is sometimes the only way to get what you want.
Ah life, what a journey it is with its twists and turns, lessons and choices, mysteries and surprises.
The soft rain continues to fall. Birds sing. Insects chat. And the trip to town waits for another day.
It is lovely to be creating a relatively flexible lifestyle, where days like this can be embraced. My intention had been to go to town today. But after being there yesterday for a meeting and the general functioning of life, not getting a sunny day is a simple enough reason to excuse myself from heading out today.
It's not that one can't go to town in the rain. Of course it is possible. But I'd rather enjoy the beauty of the day and use the time more wisely from the cottage instead. Sometimes, often in fact, not getting what you want is a gift indeed (as previously mentioned in my article Wishes in the Wind).
When I think of the various desires I've had in my life and the way things have turned out, I am glad that I didn't get everything I thought I once wanted.
There have been times over the years when like most people, I am sure, I've been terribly disappointed about a particular outcome of something or another. Things didn't turn out as I'd hoped. But as life unfolded afterwards and the reasons became clearer as to why things didn't go the way that I thought I wanted, I realised the blessings that came as a result of that. (There is a sun shower out now, beautiful).
Recently, I was reminded of the gift in not getting what I thought I wanted. When things didn't unfold as I had initially hoped, a beautiful peace flowed through me soon after. It brought relief and trust. I didn't know what was coming instead of that event. But it didn't matter. My faith was strong enough to know that only good was unfolding. And perhaps it was this that brought the relief, rather than ongoing disappointment.
And sure enough, before too long, things became clearer as to why the other path would not have suited. In the end, it's about stepping out there, taking one step at a time, and trusting where each step leads. If there is a closed door in front of you that you can't open, then trust that it is closed for a reason. Sure, try to open it. But if it doesn't open, let go and find one that does. Or let go and wait.
Not getting what you want is often a gift in disguise. And while it may take some time to understand why that is, it is often worth the wait. A common element of things not coming my way, that I thought I wanted, is when I think my heart is in it, but it's not wholly and completely. It is when I am making compensations within myself, to make something happen. But they are compensations that would not be good for me in the long run. And even though my heart may be in the idea to a decent degree, if I am truly honest with myself, it is not in it completely. And sure enough, things don't flow naturally then.
And yet when my heart is truly into something, with total honesty and no compensations, things flow. Sometimes there are challenges to be overcome, sure. But either way, the strength is there to unblock those challenges. And then flow it does, beautifully.
Knowing the difference between overcoming a challenge and letting something flow, or acknowledging that something just doesn't want to flow, that the door to that direction is closed for a reason, comes down to listening to the heart, with total honesty.
So when things aren't flowing and you are not getting what you think you want, perhaps it is worth asking yourself do you truly want it? Are you making compensations to your heart's true desires by trying to force something to unfold that in the long run, may not be what you really want, if you are completely honest with yourself?
After all, not getting what you want is sometimes the only way to get what you want.
Ah life, what a journey it is with its twists and turns, lessons and choices, mysteries and surprises.
The soft rain continues to fall. Birds sing. Insects chat. And the trip to town waits for another day.
