July 9

PATIENCE MONTH: DAY  9: “There are three qualities that every individual must have to achieve success: a Monk’s patience, a Warrior’s courage, a Child’s imagination.” ― Sharad Vivek Sagar

This quote makes me smile. I have all of these qualities on any given day, but seldom at the same time. It is a work in progress, like all things are for me.

The one that is the least accomplished in me is the patience of a monk. I meditate every morning, and most days at some point in the afternoon. But, it is a funny thing how this has progressed. I went to a meditation/11^th Step meeting when I was relatively new to this thing and was so disappointed to watch members get up and get coffee because they thought no one would notice (eyes closed). And the idea of slamming down a bunch of coffee before trying to meditate is ridiculous! How on earth would that work? I don’t get it, but I know there are people who do it.

I can sit for some time. One of the best ways I meditate is pulling weeds. I sit in the dirt and scooch my butt from one patch of weeds to the next. It is very absorbing and brings peace to my mind. And I do very long beach walks, practicing breathing with the waves. This is a great way to learn breath control too. And it puts me in the right place in about 2 or 3 breaths. I am at peace with ocean energy anyway. I have meditated with trees and can certainly understand how Buddha achieved enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. My favorite trees are redwoods. They feel familial to me, as do oak trees. I am blessed to live where there are those three elements: ocean, oak trees and redwoods.

Again, the word Warrior brings a smile to me. I only get courage after the fact. Most of the time, I have to force myself to walk through things that later feel very courageous to me. But I never have had the courage up front. It is an acquired thing I get after the act is completed. But I love being a Warrior spirit and believe that is the calling I am here to manifest. Like I wrote yesterday, that is the literal meaning of my name. And I love it and claim it fully. There is not much I am not willing to do to overcome my addiction and all the trauma of my early life. Otherwise, all of that would have been a waste, and I don’t want to ever have to repeat any of it. And I never, ever, ever give up!

Any of you who have spent time with me will recognize my incredible imagination. Someone will say something to me, and I will have a whole TV series written in my head about it. I have a bizarre way of seeing things, and part of it is the crazy imagination I have going on in there. Yikes! It is a beautiful thing that all of the incredible fantasy life I used to have while drinking and drugging is now a creative place where I can visualize treatment modalities and programs and all kinds of healing concepts that do not yet exist in time and space and figure out how to develop them. I am amazed at how many new ideas I can come up with in a day…kind of scary…sometimes. But I also get to laugh a lot! And that makes me believe that some of it comes from that Power, creation itself!

Where do you sit in this definition of success? I am feeling very good about the progress. It feels good sometimes to check in with how we are doing, doesn’t it?