art 4 regulation
What is one question?
Oh you can ask me anything. I won’t get mad, I might not answer, I might redirect or distract, but generally I’ll just answer. Curiosity is human and isn’t it a bit of a compliment if someone is interested enough to care to ask?
How has a setback, or apparent setback, set you up for later success?
Set up for success? I think that learning something new is a good place to feel angst. Most learning involves setbacks. I forget this.
Sometimes these failures or setbacks feel super discouraging , but always on the other side is some knowledge gained, some skill mastered. some little success.
The one thing I keep learning is to let the vibe go. I don’t need to swirl around in disappointing details. I can affect my energy around my failures (failure sounds so permanent, which it doesn’t have to be). I can and I have. This might be what I’m needing most to practice at this point. Making Instagram reels has so much to teach me!
Is it really ready? I’ll find out in an hour or so.
We used to say this when we played hide and seek or kick the can. If you’re “it” you count and then shout “Ready or not, here I come”. No one gave two seconds of thought to this. We just said it and began. It was a signal, like “Game on!’ If you’ve ever played this game, you know it all starts long before that moment, with the counting and the running and the hiding, which was actually the fun part. Waiting to be discovered could get a little boring sometimes.
I want very much to get to the fun part of what I’m doing now. I may have thought that seeing my mock up might be fun. Or sharing it, but instead I’ve been given this interesting pause, which has correlated with my trying to make and post reels on Instagram. Neither thing has gone smoothly.
Does it matter?
No, guess not. I really need to put this into some perspective. Does any of this matter? (takes a big gulp of coffee) uh… probably not. All the little hiccups and setbacks are part of what makes a project a project. What is getting me so caught up in the not so joyous details, I wonder?
A better question might be how can I make any of this more fun? How can I make this about what it’s really about? Its never going to be fun or real to me if all Im worried about are numbers and ‘likes’ and failed attempts at uploading reels. Or printing delays.
I’m quite ready to find a different vibe to create in. Where did the love go? Where is the joy? Oh, right, it’s hiding (probably in plain sight). I guess I sort of forgot whose job it is to look for it.
Me. I’m ‘it’! Ready or not…
You’re writing your autobiography. What’s your opening sentence?
No, no I’m not. There isn’t one.
I’m not exactly sure why or how this happened but Instagram sent me a QR code. I haven’t tried it yet, but it’s supposed to be a link to the reel I made today.
I feel like the reel was a fair effort on my part. Not great. There is still so much more to learn, but I made a reel and it held my attention. It didn’t upload fully, there are glitches, yet Instagram threw me this little bone of encouragement. At least that’s how I see it
I’ll post it here and then I will see if it works. Oh and I haven’t lost a follower in days, so there’s that too.
What are three objects you won’t live without?
I’ve learned that I can live pretty basically. I wouldn’t have known this a year ago, being a comfort seeking homebody sort, but life sometimes shows you different sides of yourself, which I’ve definitely seen lately.
Three things that I have appreciated on this meandering journey have been One: my iPhone (of course), my little pocket computer/camera/library etc. Two: My giant metal cup (it’s not a famous Stanley brand, but the same idea) I fell in love with hot coffee, tea and heavy cream in abundance and now I’m pretty hooked. Third, I’d pick my(our) Jeep. I adore that little vehicle. It feels like freedom and comfort in the best measures. I named it Jenny of the Roses after my latest favorite song by Hiss Golden messenger. I miss driving around on heated seats listening to loud music and exploring places unknown…So phone, cup and Jenny Jeep
What experiences in life helped you grow the most?
Sometimes I need to hear something a million different times and in a million different ways to finally HEAR it.
I probably need to see and experience things a million different times to change my perception.
So I guess maybe it’s just that one more time that makes me go OOOHhh!
So I was painting a closet this morning and I heard it. Often when I hear something, I can’t unhear it and this time, I really hope I don’t forget it.
It’s funny how whatever experience I’m in, it’s always, in a separate seemingly unrelated way, teaching me something about myself. It’s never about becoming something else as much as it is about healing and letting go of some part of my own self that isn’t serving me. Is it true that a door has to close before another one opens?
The issue is never the problem, it’s a symptom of something bigger. In other words if I want to become better at something, I have to let go of what makes me struggle with it. If for example I wanted to be a better batter, I would have to first stop batting like I have been. Maybe I would have to hold the bat differently or take a different stance. Maybe I would have to change what I thought about as I swung. But maybe it’s not all about batting at all. Maybe I have some deep beliefs about playing ball or being a player or who knows. Maybe I have bigger concerns to let go of. Maybe hitting is a metaphor. (Or struggling on social media)
I guess what I heard was to step back and pay attention to the broader picture. In order for me get out of my own way, I need to consider more than just the symptoms of what I think is the problem. I want to be a whole and healthy person rather than simply a success. I might need to consider something deeper than my Instagram skill set.
Do you believe in fate/destiny?
This is a thought provoking question/prompt.
On one hand maybe I do. Wasn’t Bobby Orr destined to play hockey? Or Whitney Houston to sing? Or Robin Williams to be a comedian ? Some people seem to be destined to be doctors or engineers or whatever. How else can we explain say, Elvis?
But then…
I can’t help wondering if we aren’t just born with talents or attributes, maybe into families who support or don’t support our abilities. Plenty of super talented people don’t go on to become well known or successful. Plenty of child prodigies fizzle out before they become adults.
What IS the magic component? What caused Michael Jordon to become Michael Jordon?
Could it have something to do with love and devotion and quite possibly a huge amount of passion for something? Maybe it has more to do with falling in love with what we are doing and doing it a lot because we love it, and less to do with just being good at it. Unless being good makes us love it all the more?
I hope it’s love…
This QR code will take you to Amazon to Peaceful Hearts
Do you enjoy your job?
I do.
Awhile ago I read Joe Dispenza’s two latest books. He’s a good speaker and writer, and he seems to explain quantum theory pretty well.
Today I ran across a couple of new podcasts that Joe D. was on and I heard him say clearly and twice that “if we can learn to self regulate.” “If we can learn to recognize when we are dysregulated and self regulate…”
I know some people who’ve attended his workshops. (The day I finished one book I actually ran into a friend who had just attended one). Our conversation wasn’t as dramatic as I might have expected. I can’t really recall much of what we talked about. My friend is already doing well. He’s a healthy and successful happily married father of five. Joe’s seminars are upwards from $15,000 for a week and often appeal to people with chronic health issues. They are so popular there is a waitlist to even sign up. I don’t see myself signing up or waiting to, but, I enjoy what he has to say.
If you have read or listened to Joe, he does get you thinking, with all his brain scanning and evidence that he might be onto something.
What I like hearing is that meditation is not as hard a sale as it used to be. People accept that they can change their habits by paying attention and being aware. Its common for his followers to take a step back from being dysregulated by something, to just breathe. He says if you want to change your behavior, you first have to change your energy.
What used to be something people had to be convinced of, is becoming common knowledge. Our brains are elastic. We can self regulate. Recognizing dysregulation and knowing what to do is a helpful life skill. I feel like there is a lot of good news here
In this fast paced, opinion driven world, feelings can get intense. Learning to regulate will not only benefit us personally, but also everyone we associate with. Bringing a calm, confident self into any situation will only make it better.
I’ve seen this happen with children.
They used to say people can’t change. Now, using focus and intent we have proof that we can. We can change in a moment and we can change in our life. We can, as Joe often says, become someone else. Science suggests that we do anyway, but what Joe is saying is that we have some creative control in the process.
How cool is that ?!
Peace Kit