Beginning a Journey to Examine Your Life? Some Packing Tips

In a previous blog, we talked about answering the question, “How do I know that I am on a healing journey?”

Today, we talk about how to begin that healing journey – especially if you are on the threshold of self examination and personal growth.

If we are to walk a path, we get to search inside of each of us to find the traits that keep us walking. These traits are many: willingness to encounter the unknown, persistence, bravery, creativity, among a few.

Then we look outside of us – to our relationships. These are the relationships that sustain us, that remind us that we are loved, respected, valuable. They may be family members, friends, neighbors, teachers, congregation members. This is the strength of community. The truth is, we need others on the path with us. Don Quixote had Sancho Panza. The Lone Ranger had Tonto. Yogi Bear had Boo Boo.

And there is spiritual – which relates to whatever we experience as bigger than ourselves. Yes, this can be the force of God, the inspiration of Jesus but is even more than that – the natural cycles of the sun and the moon, the magnificent of the lake outside the window, the word of the Dalai Lama, the amazing very old tree…

Most of us have these gifts in at least one area of our lives, and it is important that we recognize these gifts. They help us embark on the journey because the journey is always in to the unknown – the future.

On the journey we discover more strength within ourselves. Struggles can pull us down and discourage us, but they are also avenues where we rediscover our gifts and discover new strengths that we had. Sometimes these new strengths are a surprise; at other times

In this walk with wholeness, we will also want to include pleasure. To enjoy. Learn. Grow. And, yes, search – but not urgently. Urgency takes away the pleasure of the walk and the ability to be present with each moment.

We will also want to practice self care, to grow in love for ourselves.

The Bible tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves, but often we love our neighbor a little bit more, especially if we are caretakers of others. We often put others’ welfare and well being above our own. There are times when our unselfishness is important, even mandatory, and there are other times when our lack of attention to self damages us and our ability to be present and available in the world – and truly be of help to others.

Finally, if we are truly to walk the journey with wholeness, we must treasure the shadow part of ourselves. This shadow part is the part of us that is imperfect, that holds feelings of fear, shame, pain, loss. This is the part that has sloppy feelings and is little and vulnerable and doesn’t want to be a responsible adult but just want to be taken care of. The part that has experiences that we would prefer not to look to.

Yet we must accept our imperfections, just as we acknowledge the ancestor who is the black sheep, the horse thief or the wild one. The fact is that more that we can accept our perfections – with love – the more that we claim our wholeness.  The more that we can move ahead to the next chapter…

That in itself – claiming our strengths, our gifts, our weaknesses, our sloppy emotions, our uncertainties is the key to moving forward.

I like what Eckert Tolle says:

"Your outer journey may contain a million steps; your inner journey only has one; the step you are taking right now."