My DSWL planner has a spot for an intention of the week. This week I wrote “Go gently. These are problems that can be solved.”
It’s another version of “work the problem”—something I should tattoo on my forearm to find some action amidst the chaos.
It’s the opposite energy that had me breaking down in tears before Calculus class in high school — my patience for puzzles and math is thinner than rice paper.
I try to bring a calmer energy to the problems I currently face. One lesson that keeps getting put in front of me is to slow down and ask more questions. When things start moving fast, go slow. I felt that tug on my heart today, when it’s so easy to say ‘fine’ or ‘sure’ and be done with something without a potential conflict. But I remembered the consequences, the stakes, and went back with more questions when what people wanted was a ‘yes’. I don’t think I do that enough. Or rather, I do that later than I should.
Go gently. These are problems that can be solved.
It’s also a bit of perspective for focusing on what is in my control, the issues and to-dos that I can do something about. There are some problems that I cannot solve on a Tuesday, or in January, or this year. But the problems in my immediate world do have solutions, or experiments, or something that moves us forward. This is work, vet calls, volunteer events . . . I’m not trying to send someone to discover life on a distant planet or, god forbid, solve a calculus worksheet again.
With Love,
Natalie