Heroes Not Zombies

What makes a good day a good day? Our daily experience is shaped and influenced by a countless myriad of forces, signals, energies and events. Most of those influences impact on us unconsciously….we neither register them, nor do we consciously respond to them. But they shape our days all the same.

That’s not to say that we can’t play a more active role. We can. We can be the co-creators of our daily reality. There are at least three ways to do that.

First, we can create the spaces and pauses which enable us to reflect instead of react. We do this by slowing down, taking time to more fully savour the experiences which nurture us.

Second, we can make choices, choosing to follow certain chains of thought, and choosing to let go of others. We can choose to keep doing, thinking or feeling the same thing, and so reinforce the path we have created, or we can choose to do something different, to think something different, and, yes, even to feel something different.

Third, we can seek out and/or create the contexts, events and environments which we know set us up unconsciously to experience what we want to experience.

Looking at this third option recently, I’ve decided there are a number of qualities which positively influence my day. There’s curiosity and wonder. There’s joy. There’s love, kindness and positive intention. The more I can seek, create, pay attention to, nurture any of those, the more I am setting my brain up to respond accordingly. Even when I’m not consciously choosing.

So, here is a photo I took the other day which I find fills me with both joy and wonder. It’s a photo of a wild fig tree which has been growing outside of my garden, and the Boston Ivy plant which has survived the collapse of the enormous old stone wall which runs along that border. That wall fell eleven months ago now, but the vine which seemed to tumble down with it survived, grew and, look – its leaves are a more glorious red this year than they have ever been.

Life amazes me.

I am amazed how a seed can fall somewhere apparently random, germinate, take root and grow….with no involvement from human hands. And I’m amazed at the resilience of plant which can be partially uprooted, which can have the vast bulk of its being destroyed, but can survive. No, not just survive, but thrive.

I didn’t add beauty to my list, but there is no doubt that contemplating beauty is good for the heart and the spirit.

So, here it is to share with you today……an image of beauty which I hope will set you up for wonder and joy today.