A Nice Day for Mom

When I was a young I hated the advice "bloom where you are planted." It sounded like a cop-out or an accuse for lethargy. I have always been on the go. I'm motivated by the idea of a ladder and I always want to climb to the next rung, learn what is waiting around the next corner. I still view this as a positive character trait.

Recently I've tripped over the realization that the more I know, the harder it becomes to grow in holiness. The cornerstone of my personality is adventure and work. The more I find out about people and the wide world the further away heaven and clarity seem to be. How to marry these two things that both seem good?


I think cautiously is the only way to get on. I am thinking of my present time as a bowl to be filled with my very best effort. I want to let go of the desire for success, prestige, possessions, promotion, money, and acknowledgment. I actually believe that if I fully accept this very place I am in as where I am meant to be and use my natural energy to max-out on my tasks, what is meant to be will follow- perhaps more than if I was breaking my back for the future.

They say, "reach for the stars," and they talk about dreaming big dreams A LOT. And I don't think that is bad. But it is heavy, and it does have the potential to distract from the now. I've wasted so much time dreaming of becoming smarter, fitter, and richer. The goal is to look around me and say, "what can I do with what I've got RIGHT NOW?" Being smart, fit, rich, beautiful, white, black, strong, healthy, childless, married, or single, doesn't make me better. Accepting MY portion as what is meant for me alone, and working it to death is what makes me better than I was yesterday.

*Edit: All this to say, don't let your vision and aspiration for the future steal from the goodness of every day.