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Andrea Shea
Hudson,
www.andreasheahudson.com, a coaching friend of mine said to me
recently:
“If you’re
going to write the script for your life, why not write a great
one?”
“The blizzard
of 2005” was my thought with coffee this morning. After a quick prayer
that no one was seriously harmed, a wave of homesickness swept through
me. How beautiful Boston and New York City are during a snowfall. People
outdoors and on-foot because traffic is stilled and quieted opens up the
sound of those inhabiting the city without car horns blaring, mass
transit buses, and the sea of yellow taxis. Neighborhoods feeling like
neighborhoods due to increased social activity available with the city
closing down. The various architectures covered in a blanket of
undisturbed whiteness, allowing the environment to appear Norman
Rockwell-ish, artistic and magical. Observing the variety of colors in
hats, gloves and scarves along with some very creative winter clothing.
Children busy with snowball fights, people playing with their dogs,
sledding in Central Park or The Boston Commons, snowmen and ice
sculptures reflecting the voice of artists’ talents and, of course, the
smell of brownstone apartment fireplaces reminding me that there is a
warm place awaiting – with a mug of hot chocolate or bowl of tomato
soup.
Sleep comes
easily that night after a day of outdoor adventure, bonding, and
rediscovery.
Then the
“adult” I was taught to be took over with my second cup of coffee:
Puddles of slush, snow turning gray (and yellow); folks cranky due to
mass transit systems and airports running off-schedule; salt and plow
trucks blocking in vehicles and dirtying windshields. The city
sanitation workers unable to pick-up and discard piles of garbage. snow
days from school with no childcare; frozen wiper blades; and having to
walk to the store for provisions in the wind and cold.
I smiled. How
drastically my perceptions altered and shifted. “The scripts I write are
based on my perspectives, aren’t they?” I commented to Andrea in my
head. The two visions I had just created are two very different scripts
based on two very different perspectives. I stood at a crossroad in my
mind.
Which
perspective of the above two best reflect me today? I thought. I chose
to open my recovery and coach training toolbox for the right questions
to ask myself:
Which
perspective holds more value of the two visions I created? How do
I look at the world and its going’s on? Are there adventures and
challenges or problems and defeats? Am I feeling scarcity or abundance?
Is my glass half empty or over flowing? Do I see possibilities or stops
and drama? Did I create the time to check in on these perceptions,
or was I being reasonable: I am too busy, tired, over-committed and
inundated with more important things. Then I thought:
What could
possibly be more important than checking in with or discovering my
perspective, since that is the foundation that creates the way my life
feels and how I feel about the life I create?
My answer:
The perspective
I choose to live from today is a far cry from the perspective I was
taught to have through my family experiences, the media, organizations
from the past, grade school and my previous choices. I welcome
crossroads today because thru them I have the power of choosing the
direction I travel.
Today I am
free, willing and unafraid to recall experiences that may create
homesickness, pain or longing in me. I can go home again without living
in the past. There are memories there that leave me warm inside and not
depressed while I am conscious to the gifts of my life here in Atlanta.
It felt good this morning revisiting and picturing the possibilities of
adventure, rediscovery and bonding during a snowstorm up north. I also
believe anything I mourn over was worth having in the first place. So
that I do not end up back in my story or in the past negatively, I use
an allotted time frame while I revisit if I feel sadness, loss or pain.
This is another new perspective for me. I was taught that you can’t go
home again and that the past should stay in the past.
The empowerment
I feel from choosing my perspective comes from my commitments and risk
taking as well as long-term involvement in the recovery world,
professional coaching, quality friends, mentors, and consistently making
the time to discover and utilize the tools for living and not just
existing. For me, living is always having a choice. Everyone has choices
in everything though only a few of us learn how powerful that is when
creating the present and future. Today I choose to not only discover and
pick up the tools but to apply my energies for living into an
extraordinary life. This I do by action around my commitments and that I
do for my legacy, my children and my children’s children.
 That’s my
script, and I’m sticking to it.
“If you’re
going to write the script for your life, why not write a good one?”
How important
is understanding your perspective? You decide.
Live Gloriously,
Do you know anyone that could use
a perceptional awakening? Just hit forward on this E-mail...
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