At one point in the early 80s as a journalism student at Oregon State, I had to read three newspapers before heading to campus – The Oregonian, The Barometer and (the newly conceptualized) USA Today. I also watched CNN and the local news, before I left the house, desperately absorbing facts and figures for fear that a professor would quiz me on a random current event. I feared that I’d be left blank faced and slack-jawed like the day one had asked me “Who is Colin Powell?” He was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at that point, and I honestly had no clue as to who he was. I’d not yet shifted into full gear as a serious journalism student. Boy, did I ever kick it into high gear after the public ass chewing I received in class that day!!
That was a monumental event in my life and as a result my intention shifted to be engaged in the growth of my intelligence. My lightbulb moment per se. It was first term of my junior year and my first upper-level journalism class. I’d recently declared my major and from that horribly embarrassing moment forward, I acted like the student I wanted to be. (The student I should be.) That was quite possibly my first “fake it till you make it” time in life. My intentions stuck, and I was a straight A student in my major studies from that moment onward. It was an awesome ride and I felt fulfilled.
Today is monumental in its own way. I’m celebrating my birthday early and a couple weeks ago, I gifted myself an annual subscription to the New York Times. I deemed myself ready to allocate newspaper time again. I hit “purchase and moved on. I was happily surprised yesterday with my first driveway delivery! I’m glad the purchase had slipped my mind. What a treat!
I’ve had my head in the sand for the last couple decades… mothering, traveling, and working creating businesses for myself or growing ones others own. There’s been not enough time in the day to do it all and feel rested while staying sane, so I shirked some things, like keeping up on current events. Today I declare my 53rd year on this planet to be the year for another intentional and monumental shift, but this time it’s proactive based on my thoughts, not reactive based on embarrassment, or due to someone else’s expectations for me. My Year of Proactive Intention begins November 21st!
- I’m taking back cultivating the growth of my intelligence for my personal use, not to serve those I manage or parent.
- I’m owning my health 100% and am taking an active role in planning for *aging* rather than just my current lifestyle.
- I’m launching a few small businesses that will support my mind, body & emotions in very healthy and positive ways, leaving me time and energy for my spiritual growth.
- I’m claiming the relationships I want to cultivate and walking out on the ones that no longer soothe my soul due to lack of reciprocity or toxicity.
- I’m continuing to practice a ridiculous level of gratitude that begins each day with celebrating the sunrise as it crests over our lake. (We sleep with the curtains open now and I wake with the sun. It’s an incredible way to begin mornings and I am rocked by my heart’s daily gratefulness.)
- I’m continuing to allow my heart and mind to drive my daily activity. The flow I’ve found recently inspires bliss. The peace I feel daily fuels my soul and the overflow pours into my creativity & happiness that I get to share with others. I cannot imagine another way to live.
I expect that this year will deliver some valleys along with gorgeous peaks, but that’s my life as usual. What’s extraordinary this year is that I’m beginning it where I know I will end it. Living on an island with Ian, on a lake, in a beautiful house that I believe we will call home for many years to come. After our gypsy existence for two decades, this odd feeling of “putting down roots” is like a warm, sloppy hug.
My mind has finally accepted the permanency of our situation. It’s been a rough 10-months of painful adjustment and uncomfortable, messy change. In October 2020, I didn’t even have a map nor an idea of our destination. All I knew was the feelings I was chasing… joy, calm, peace, love, and balance.
I’ve achieved them all. This morning I celebrated, as I read The New York Times Sunday edition on a Monday (because that’s the time of day for reading the paper in my mind, and I was booked Sunday!) I sipped my gorgeous oatmilk latte, looked out at my lake and toasted the life events – positive & negative – that have catapulted me here. The bruises & anguish along with the laughter & joy… they all play a role in this colorful life.
Cheers.
#mindfulness #intention #thenewyorktimes
Kibby Jardine 