Fine Tuning

 

“Discomfort is aroused only to bring the need for correction into awareness.” ~ A Course in Miracles

Twice this week, I woke up in a sweat earlier than my alarm clock. The season is changing – the cold July nights that had me load the bed with blankets are giving way to warmer nights and sunny days. Yes, it’s time for my beautiful crocheted blanket to head to the cleaners and on to storage.

Either that, or I could continue to hold on to the blanket and wonder why I’m waking up tired and feeling restless all day, then complain about my beloved Bailey spending the nights perched on my leg and blame her for all my problems.

While I live in the tropics and don’t get to enjoy the 4-seasons, there are still discernible changes in the weather pattern that signal the turns of the tides. Those changes call for corresponding changes to my spaces if I’m to continue to enjoy life. In January, I take my umbrella out of my bag and enjoy carrying lighter handbags. It comes back in April, and again in September. My bedding changes with the weather too, lighter some months, heavier, especially in June and July.  

There are other ‘seasons’ that signal it is a time for change in our lives.

A previously sporadic symptom has suddenly become a loud siren in your life. Once-upon-a-snug jeans won’t even come past the knees now. A hitherto warm or hot relationship has suddenly gone lukewarm. All warning signs that we commonly ignore, to our peril. Are you aware of the shifting seasons? Do you know when the tides are changing?

When we are watchful, then we can take advantage of opportunities that ride the new tides. Growth happens when we make a choice at the crossroads, rather than when we take a pause and sit down.  

What waves are sweeping over your life right now? Are some changes in the offing? Is it time to slow down and rest? Is it time to go out and sow your seeds? Is it harvest time? Have you harvested and now need to build new barns? Is it time to learn new things because what you know is not solving the problems you’re facing? Have you been silent for a while and it is now time to talk? Are there things you need to delegate or let go of? Is it time to change the curtains, let go of that couch, or finally buy that cabinet? That book you’ve been struggling to finish, time to let go and pick a page-turner?

I was listening to a podcast about recalibrating your life for the season you’re in and it struck me that most of us never interrogate the discomfort in our lives. We just complain and keep doing the same things expecting life to get easier someday, or settling into the discomfort, oblivious to the effects of the stress created. If we just took time to observe our days and their pain points, we would sooner get to restoring balance by recalibrating the necessary things in our lives.

Spend some time this coming weekend checking what is working and what is not. Think through the changes that are necessary and don’t take on too much at a time. You want to make it work, not burn out. Will it be your clothes, your books, your routines, your food, your habits, your symptoms, your person? It does not always have to be radical surgery – sometimes a clarifying conversation or a little repair or a little cleaning is all it takes to restore balance. Whatever it takes, recalibrate.

“Trial and error is your best friend. It’s all about perspective and your willingness to become better with every lesson.” ~ Robin S. Baker

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