Jan23
Posted on Jan 23 by Ruth Davis
A few weeks ago, I wrote about letting go and having faith that something new will grow. This week I realized that letting go is also about mindsets. Letting go of a desired outcome, letting go of the one way, the only way I see something working out. This week I learned that, when I am able to release my strong hold on a particular scenario, space opens up for new possibilities, new ideas, new ways to achieve the desired outcome. Imagine you are walking on a lovely path and suddenly, your route is blocked by a giant, fallen tree. You might get so focused on how the tree has blocked your path that you are unable to consider any other options. But if you would just step back from the tree, you might see a secondary path right there, waiting for you. That’s what happened to me. I was so disappointed that I didn’t have the money to keep working with my coach that I got stuck in that mindset. When I finally let go of the possibility...
Jan13
Posted on Jan 13 by Ruth Davis
Imagine what might be possible if you open yourself to a new thought When I was in my 20’s I imagined that I would be the next Great American Writer. I sat at my portable electric Royal typewriter every day, inventing stories about people, documenting my observations, journaling ideas for my first great novel. One afternoon a friend said to me, “Why do you bother? There are no new ideas. Everything’s already been said.” Now, she was an important person in my life, and very smart–– her IQ was high enough to join the Mensa Society–– and so I believed her. And I stopped writing. Twenty years later I took a deep breath and signed up for a creative writing class with an amazing teacher who encouraged my writing, challenged my skills and inspired me to write deeper and better. One day in class she said, “There are no new ideas.” My heart sank to my knees. No, not again. And then she finished her sentence. “And so it’s your job as a writer to come up with new ways...
Jan04
Posted on Jan 4 by Ruth Davis
What do you know today that you did not know this same time last year? Please share your comments below!
Dec31
Posted on Dec 31 by Ruth Davis
This letting go business is tough. When we let go of something, how do we know something better will come? What happens if it’s gone forever? Whenever I start to doubt, I turn to Nature for assurance. Nature seems to be a wonderful reflection for us humans. In Carlsbad, California there is a place called The Flower Fields where they grow acres and acres of ranunculus. From March through May, the fields are full with every color of flower: red, orange, yellow, white, pink, even purple, as far as you can see. But after the season, the farm workers harvest the seeds from the crop and plow the fields down. They fumigate all the beds to be sure to kill everything. And they let the soil rest. Through the winter the fields are empty, colorless, waiting. In early spring, new seeds are planted by hand, row after row, the workers trusting that the coming year’s crop will bloom as colorful and beautiful as the year before. While previous harvests strongly support the possibility, there is no guarantee. But the flowers certainly...
Dec14
Posted on Dec 14 by Ruth Davis
My mentor, Christine Kane suggests that, instead of making New Year’s Resolutions for lofty goals that are impossible to keep, you consider picking a word to guide you throughout the year. She recommends that you choose a word that supports the intention for what you want to be more of in your life. I have been using Christine’s Word for the Year practice since 2007 because it really works. The word serves as a guidepost for me as I make choices through the year. I post the word in my bathroom and acknowledge it daily, asking myself “how can I be that?” That first year I chose VULNERABILITY. I wanted to let go of control and open to things that I didn’t have the answers to. I was ready to feel what was uncomfortable and go even deeper. I had so many opportunities during that year to practice this: with relationships, how I traveled, choosing to apply for a job that I didn’t get. And I had emergency open heart surgery. Talk about vulnerability and letting go of control....
Dec03
Posted on Dec 3 by Ruth Davis
What story are you telling? For the last two years I have been angry and resentful about the care I received after my open heart surgery that left me with an ugly and painful keloid scar. I wrote letters asking the doctor to take responsibility and pay for a scar revision but was denied. When I finally heard myself telling my story out loud, I realized that I was holding on to all kinds of negativity that really wasn’t serving me. I had set myself up as a victim in my own story. Once I realized this simple truth, I asked myself, what story would I rather be telling? Did I want to continue the fight and pursue legal action, fueling the anger and resentment? Did I want to keep seeing a part of my body as ugly? I knew I needed to let go of the who-done-me-wrong saga and find a new story to tell where, instead of a victim, I am a hero. What new story would you rather tell? I thought about what I really wanted...
