What Season Are You In?
What brings me alive at this point in my life?
The practice of living with intention in constant change.
The theme of Seasons has been ever-present in my conversations with clients and friends over the last few weeks. This is likely because the actual season is changing (yea daffodils, boo Daylight Savings Time transition), the end of Q1 is here (where did February go?), and the season of my life is changing as my daughter is graduating high school in 77 days (but who is counting?).
What season are you in right now?
Are you:
transitioning into a new role or a new job?
planning for a wedding?
focusing on your health?
caring for aging parents?
scheduling a zillion summer camps for your kids?
tackling a new project at work?
training for a marathon?
dreaming of a beach vacation?
feeling stuck?
At this point in my life, living with intention has taken on a new sense of urgency and priority. So, I'm doubling down on my reflection practices and wanted to share them with you!
It's no secret that I'm a fan of big questions and prompts -- here are some of my favorites:
What brings me alive at this point in my life?
The key here is "at this point in my life?". You're not trying to solve for your existential purpose here, simply the "right now".
Set an intention: "I am..."
Claim how you want to show up in this season. Put it on a post it note on your computer, make it your lock screen saver, keep it in front of you. I'm working with "I am Present" this season (for obvious reasons). If, like me, you are challenged by this one, you might enjoy this 10-minute podcast where she talks through a presence-practice that I use often.
Notice nature
Nature is showing off in a new, beautiful way as each day the grass gets greener, new flowers pop up, and the sun stays out longer. In this season, I'm noticing. Last year, I planted some bulbs where I could see them out my window. This season, I'm checking in on them every day. Notice the trees that you walk by on your way to grab coffee, pay attention to how late the sun stays out, appreciate that feeling of a cool morning before summer hits.
Give yourself permission
Whew. What do you need to let go of for this season? Where do you need to unclench? How can you create ease
Maybe it is permission to get a slow start to your mornings -- or to get up early and watch the sunrise. Maybe it is permission to work less than 50+ hours a week so you can squeeze in a walk. Maybe it is not taking on the role of Family Organizer for every event this spring. This season, I'm giving myself permission to not worry about how much we eat out. I'm usually pretty strict about this, but right now we are all over the place, so as long as we're fed, it's ok.
Here's the thing about seasons, they come and they go. This is both a wonderful and a heart-wrenching thing. The constancy of this is both comforting and challenging. So whatever season you are in... live it intentionally.
You've got this. So do I.