“Reshaping life! People who can say that have never understood a thing about life—they have never felt its breath, its heartbeat—however much they have seen or done. They look on it as a lump of raw material that needs to be processed by them, to be ennobled by their touch. But life is never a material, a substance to be molded. If you want to know, life is the principle of self-renewal, it is constantly renewing and remaking and changing and transfiguring itself, it is infinitely beyond your or my obtuse theories about it.”
― Boris Pasternak, Doctor Zhivago
When you’re starting anything over again, there’s commonly an exuberance. It can be both frightening and exciting. When you’re starting out in something that is brand new, you’re a beginner again–and there are new steps that you need to take in order to continue to improve. In Zen Buddhism, the beginning stage of an experience is thought of as empty mind or beginner’s mind. You’re learning new behaviors, new skill-sets, new ways of being, new viewpoints to your inner self. If you love the endeavor, notice that it will come into being without effort. If it’s an experience that you need to learn, but don’t necessarily love it, you’ll find ways to get there. When you confront parts of life with a beginner’s mind, you’ll find many ways to do something.
Here are 3 steps to start over again when you feel that it’s time to grow forward.
1. Appreciate that which you normally might take for granted
“People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don’t even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child—our own two eyes. All is a miracle.”
― Thich Nhat Hanh, The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation
We are all born as innate creators. You are the artist, designer, and maker of your life. All that occurs in your life happens because you allow it. Take control and become a warrior of your life. If you do not believe that you are a creator of your life, it could be because you were told you weren’t when you were young––maybe you weren’t encouraged to remain creative. You can easily get your creativity back. Work to get back in touch with your child self––your child mind. See everything as if it were a new experience. Don’t bring past experiences into new outlook. View it all as if you were just beginning.
2. See everything with new eyes of beauty
“Looking at beauty in the world, is the first step of purifying the mind.”
― Amit Ray, Meditation: Insights and Inspirations
When you begin to take charge of your life and realize that you are creating what is happening to you, you are building a new future for yourself. A new now. Work to view surroundings from the inside out. Look at your character, your competence, your initiative, and discover your positive energy. We all need to anchor our sense of identity—to re-discover our strengths and talents. By searching for beauty, beauty comes to us.
Find out and know what you really value––what holds meaning to you. Uniquely you. I used to live by the societal rules—or at least tried to. I was on autopilot quite often and believed much of what I heard. Little nudges and thoughts would pop up to me––to open my eyes and wake me up. I have found that new awakening moments will continuously occur if you notice and allow them. Today is the day. Today is your day. Don’t let dullness suck the beauty of life out of you.
3. Don’t take it all too seriously
“It’s dark because you are trying too hard.
Lightly child, lightly. Learn to do everything lightly.
Yes, feel lightly even though you’re feeling deeply.
Just lightly let things happen and lightly cope with them.
––Aldous Huxley
Have fun with your life and don’t look back. Allow and trust your intuition. Allow a feeling of why not and let’s see what happens. A carefree attitude is necessary. When a person becomes too serious, growth will not occur in a positive sense. Begin dreaming way bigger than you ever have. Really!! Keep your goals large and enjoy the process. Trust and believe it will work. You’re completely amazing—live like it. Even if people tell you that you’re successful, keep raising your own bar. Keep pushing yourself. You’re either moving forward or standing still. Cherish yourself. You are more than you realize.
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