To keep exploring

Today is the first day of February. Today marks a new beginning. Every moment in fact, marks a new beginning. For many years now I have been striving to embrace the Buddhist way of being - of acceptance, of letting go, of living in the present moment, of being comfortable with uncertainty, of impermanence, of non-attachment - even though it's a part of my daily morning practice I still find myself struggling - a life long learning. This past month I needed to go in the direction of my truth, which meant getting off a track I had forged ahead on, accepting the risks and losses associated with that choice, and creating a new path. Jumping off that train has not been easy. But as I find my place in this new train, I am discovering my place is in the driver's seat. I am embarking on a journey with a new sense of freedom, to go where I want and to go at whatever pace I want. I am on a journey where I can explore the unexplored and I can feel free to land and take off as many times as I want.

As I travel this journey I commit to allowing myself to land with ideas and explore the possibilities, and I commit to landing to give myself time to rest.

I commit to being true to myself and to honoring my uniqueness.

I commit to creating my own path.

And I commit to letting my wings spread, taking risks, and soaring -- because who knows what I will discover.

The February saying on the Pema Chodron calendar hanging our kitchen speaks to my spirit. I wonder if Pema is right here with me, knowing just what i need to hear :)

"The trick is to keep exploring and not bail out, even when we find something is not what we thought. That's what we're going to discover again and again and again. Nothing is what we thought."