Article Contributed on: 1/8/2008 4:00:16 PM
"What is rooted is easy to nourish.
What is recent is easy to correct.
What is brittle is easy to break.
What is small is easy to scatter.
Prevent trouble before it arises.
Put things in order before they exist.
The giant pine tree
grows from a tiny sprout.
The journey of a thousand miles
starts from beneath your feet.
Rushing into action, you fail.
Trying to grasp things, you lose them.
Forcing a project to completion,
you ruin what was almost ripe." - The Tao Te Ching Verse 64
Ah the good old fashion New Years resolution.
Many people like to make them, and usually within a week or two they have already started to falter a bit on what they set out to do. Our lives become busy or we don't have enough energy to follow through. Why? Because change should come in small steps.
As a psychic people are always asking me about their future. They are always looking for answers as to why things happen or why things will happen. Any event in your life is not the result of just a few events but your entire life up to that point. Every choice you make adds up to present the current situation and current choice. Nothing happens by random occurrence, every choice you have ever made has led up to this moment.
That is why it is important to be mindful of all your choices. Even what you have for dinner can make a difference over a long period of time. Or it could make a difference if you decide to go out or stay int to eat. Every choice is the opportunity to plant a seed of growth or a seed of stagnation.
This is why our resolutions fail. We are not being mindful of our choices. Instead of making many small choices everyday we resolve to make one big change, that we believe will change our lives for the positive. To make change in our lives we need patience with ourselves and determination. In order to form new habits and break the old we must take small steps at eliminating old patterns and habits.
If you want to transform your life, at this moment in time make a list of all the things you do not want, all the things you have, and all the things you do want in your life. Be grateful for what you have no matter how small, for these are the ingredients for your transformation. Then look at list of things you wish to get rid of. Pick the smallest one and write out ten small steps you could take to getting rid of that thing. Work smallest to largest. You will notice as you get rid of your burdens you will have more energy and time to work towards your dreams.
Keep the Vision of what you want for your life as a clear picture in your mind, but pay attention to what is happening around you. So often we focus on what we want that we miss the opportunities right in front of us that open the door to what we want. Set goals for the future but focus on the small stepping stones of the present moment.
If you have a vision of what you want your life to be do not do it because of some silly New Years resolution, but rather make today the day that you begin your transformation. Remember always that the catapiller did not become a butterfly by putting things off, but rather it was mindful of the correct time to begin and end its transformation. It new what small steps to take and when to take them. If you made one small choice a day to transform your life then in a year you will have made 365 towards your goals and dreams.
As human beings we have the power to create our life how we want it. And living in this country we are even more free to do so. Take advantage of that whenever you can. Remember you are never alone in your choices.
"When you want something the whole universe conspires to help you achieve it" From "The Alchemist" by Paulo Coelho