Compass Points
When you are in a familiar situation there are things that guide you. You know what street to turn on to get to the library. You know which shrub that the person who delivers your morning paper usually gets your paper under. You know the route to your bathroom in the dark. But what are the compass points that guide you when you are in a new place.
I went for a hike the other day and got lost. All those trees, rocks and hills look remarkably the same. Around and around I went. To make a long story short, after going up and down yet another quite steep hill, I saw the familiar road that runs past our house. Three hours later I made it home. I needed a compass to point me in the right direction.
There are many things that guide me in a normal day: the clock, my clients, my to-do list, the needs of my family and friends, my head and my heart. Some days I am so busy reacting that I have no time to plan or to be proactive. During times of change and transitions there needs to be a balance between the two.
There are times, especially early on in the transition when the losses and endings are so raw that all you can do is react. It is what you need to do in order to survive. But if you are truly going to grow in this time of change, you need to find quiet time to think, to plan, to listen to yourself. Spend time listening to what you heart and head are saying. Tracking what lessons you have learned in your life and how they may apply to the current situation. Find what your compass points are.
For me, one of my compass points in life is learning: new knowledge and ideas mixed in with what I already know and feel. So maybe in addition to knowing what general direction I am walking because of the position of the sun, I need to learn how to accurately read a compass so I don’t get lost on my next hike.
Let me know what compass points are in your life.