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Answering the Call

3/8/2024

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PictureImage by Aurélien Barre from Pixabay
​Answering the call… what's it mean?  Not what it would have meant if I had written this several years ago.  Then it would have been about following your heart, your dreams, your passion.  Creating a life or work that calls to you.  Today, it's something much simpler. A gentle and fairly easy way to tend my heart.  (if you missed last week's post from guest blogger, Heather Ross, you can find Tending Your Heart here).   
 
For the third time this week, the birds, ocean, and sun called me to sunrise.  For the previous nine weeks, I often slept til 8 or 9, but now, with 3 days left in Hilton Head, I don't want to miss it.  I started my 60th birthday with a solo sunrise and lots of tears because there is grief about entering a new year without my son, Nate, physically here.  And because sunrise at the ocean breaks my heart open for some reason.  Even today it brought tears.  There's a primitive force that I feel in my heart.  
 
This morning, most people had already left or were leaving.  Some would say I'd missed it because I wasn't there for the breaking on the horizon moment.  I knew that would be the case and still I went.  Some would say it wasn't very dramatic because there weren't many clouds.  The breaking of a new day is always a miracle, and I rarely rise to greet it, to celebrate it - so with or without clouds, it's a powerful force, a tremendous beauty to me.  I'm glad I was there mostly alone, so I could take it in, feel, cry, let the sun and the wind caress my face while I closed my eyes and communed with, joined with them.  It's breathtaking, and I'm glad I answered the call and gave myself this time with nature rather than lying in bed trying to go back to sleep.  No, I didn’t want to miss these moments in my last days here.  I’m not a National Geographic photographer – it’s not about the perfect image – it’s about being there for it, feeling the rhythm of nature, the steadiness and impermanence in the sand as the ocean washes over the beach.
 
Today I wrote 4EVER LOVE in the sand at the shoreline, and while it stayed untouched for a few minutes, it wasn’t long before it was quickly, gently swooped away, yet still there.  Nothing can take it away.  For some reason I like offering it up to the sands and the ocean – to mingle with, become a part of these forces of beauty and nature. 
 
To breathe in the damp morning air, to bathe in the resonant sound of waves, the wind, the birdsong – it takes me away from the worries of the day, the troubles of our times, the political divide that’s already and ever escalating. Just for a few moments, I can truly feel peace, contentment, and I don’t need to do anything, produce anything, think about anything, worry about anything.  I can just breathe, listen, and take in the gift of another new day.  That, my friends, is a beautiful miracle that I will savor.
 
Even now, hours later as I sit at the kitchen table, typing up this reflection, it fills my heart, soothes, my soul, and takes me over with its magnificence.  Captivates me.  Entrances and enchants me.  Beauty.  Wonder. Awe.  These are a few of my favorite things. Happy to share them with you! 
 
What is it that brings you this sense of wonder and awe?  How can you give yourself more moments with gifts for your heart and soul?  What call is awaiting your response? Please share!!  



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Whims, What Ifs, and Wins

4/27/2022

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Whims
Oxford Languages defines a Whim as “a sudden desire or change of mind, especially one that is unusual or unexplained.” ("she bought it on a whim")

Reading that brings a sense of delight into my whole being and a smile to my face!  For some I imagine it might bring a different reaction.  However, as I reflect back on my life some of the very best things have happened “on a whim!” 

When I first thought about writing about this word for today’s #AtoZChallenge, I had the sense that the word is considered to be light, airy, and maybe fanciful – something not to be taken too seriously or even dismissed.  How does “whim” land for you? 

I’ll share just a couple of my big life whims (which also land solidly in my “win” column as things that fill me with such joy):

1. Buying my first horse, Sport, a semi-wild 5-year-old, breathtakingly beautiful grey Arab, who was very far from the ideal first horse…and yet, I had to have him.  I could feel it to my core – he excited me, he scared me, I had no idea how to work with him,he was too small and too excitable for the dressage showing I wanted to do.  And yet… my heart and soul knew we were meant to be together. 
     
At the time I was newly married. When I tried to do the logical thing of figuring out whether we            could afford him, it was clear that we could not – there was $16 left before groceries.  And yet… 
 
I was 25.  I had wanted a horse my entire life.  My husband was on board, even though it made no logical sense.  Somehow we found a way.   
 
It was one of the best moves of my life, and I have zero regrets, even though this choice certainly contributed significantly to the pile of debt we had to work harder to get out from under over the years.  You can see this beautiful creature and read our story in The Beauty of NOT being Logical!  Whims are NOT logical! 
 
2. Going alone to Australia for a 2-week writing cruise…  I am not an adventurous solo traveler.  When I could not find anyone to join me for this trip, I was ready to let it go. And yet (maybe these words are a sign of a whim!)… I could feel the longing, the desire, the need to go.  I couldn’t satisfy logical answers about why or what I expected to get.  I had never before agreed  to share a tiny box-like room with a stranger, and I was scared to death.  

And yet… I figured out how to make it happen. New Year’s Eve 2011 sent me off for one of the best adventures of my life.  I met people who are still dear to me. I connected with myself and fed my writer dream (though I still have not written the book that was stirring in me at that time).  Zero regrets.

I do many things “on a whim.”  When I see retreats, programs, teachers, or groups, I often seem to know immediately whether this is a “yes” or a “no.”  Often very big decisions happen on a whim, and in retrospect carry zero regret.  It was on a whim that I applied for and got my last full-time job at a time when I had no thought of going back to work.  Something inside of me knew the time was right to take this leap, even though I was largely unprepared! 

I am grateful my husband shares this spontaneity – most of our moves have been out of the blue, on a whim, and sometimes right after we declared we were not moving.  Actually, I met him on a whim – on a night I had sworn off men forever. 

So, are whims fanciful moves of the airheaded?  Or are they divine inspiration or soul guidance?  I have no idea what the right answer is, but from my perspective they are most assuredly guidance, intuition, knowing, and they lead me to such beautiful richness! 

What Ifs
Often times “what if’s” keep us stuck or paralyzed for fear of what might go wrong.  What if it doesn’t work out?  What if this was the wrong move?  And, don’t get me wrong, these questions live within me even in most of my whims… the bigger the decision the louder the what if!

What if we should wait?  What if that other program is better? What if our hearts aren’t big enough to love another child?  See how analysis paralysis could set in?  Waiting, worrying, looking for the perfect moment, wishing we could have certainty before making a move… we might never do anything! 

The closer we get to the thing that’s most important to the soul, the scarier it can be!  Some of my strongest anxiety has come in when things felt most right.  So strange, but maybe the intensity rouses the part that wants to keep us safe… anything to prevent a big mistake! 

And yet, what if we looked at our what if’s another way?  What if we could connect with the wonder, awe, possibility? What if this actually works out?  What if things are amazing? What if we dared to dream or hope?  These what ifs can pull us forward, even into the scary unknown, riding on the wings of hope and desire! 

Both sides of the what if are always available to us, because as we looked at in the recent post about Unknown and Uncertainty, no one can know with 100% certainty what the future holds.  So, we always have to be willing to weigh the risks, consider the pros and cons, and feel into whether something is a yes or a no for us.  With every excitement there is likely anxiety. 

Wins
When I think about wins, they have nothing to do with material gain, beating someone else out for something, or even necessarily having anything wonderful to show the world.  Sometimes I can’t prove a win to anyone.  Sometimes the win has nothing to do with the outcome and everything to do with how I showed up along the way. 

To me, a win brings a sense of contentment or fulfillment at a deep, deep level.  A win is when I feel in integrity, in alignment with my soul’s imperative. 

The whims I’ve shared here are all wins.  I’m sure there are others that haven’t gone so well, and it’s a win that they’re not coming to mind right now. 
​
How about you?  What’s your relationship with whims, what ifs, and wins?  Please share. 


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Where Can You Find More Joy?

1/28/2019

1 Comment

 
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​Holy cow!  Life can feel so hard, overwhelming, and heavy at times!  Everywhere we look there’s something to worry about, something going wrong, something to be bothered by.  Heavy!  Exhausting…  and I’m tired of being so tired by all that’s heavy and what I label to be “wrong.” 

So, I find myself wondering where can I find more joy and fun in my everyday life.   How can I bring in lightheartedness and playfulness, even when there are sad and challenging things happening in my own circle and in the world at large?  How might I create more beauty and softness around me?

Honestly, I need to take some time to consciously reconnect with what brings me joy, what I find fun. I’ve gotten a little out of touch with the carefree little girl I once was – this part of me that is still here but has been pushed aside for too long.  Can you feel your little one alive within you, just waiting to be remembered? 

It feels like it’s time for a shake-up and time to at all aspects of my life.  The old habitual “things” and ways aren’t doing it right now.  It’s time to look at my daily practices. It’s time to look at how I spend my time and who I spend time with.  It’s time to notice how I am showing up and asking what I’m bringing to the party.  For sure, what I put out is what I will attract.  Misery loves company.  But I don’t want more misery.  I want joy!  I want fun!  I want to laugh and play!    

How are you doing with your joy?  
How about you?  How are you wanting to feel?  What do you want to attract into your world?  Is it time for a change?  Maybe you, too, have gotten in a rut and feel ready to mix things up a bit.

What is it that brings you joy, delight, laughter, lightheartedness, and fun?  Take a moment and find a quiet place to sit with this question and see what bubbles up for you. 

How can you plan for a little of this each day?  It’s great to have vacations, retreats, date nights, and these types of peak experiences, but let’s make it simpler…  In this season of darkness, how can you bring some light and beauty into your home?  In this time of worry, what gives you reason to hope?  Can you tap into that?  In a time of sadness, fear, or despair, where can you find a little joy? 

What might be possible if you had a little more delight and a little more hope?  

Please share with us the ways that you find and create joy, fun, playfulness in your life in the comments below so that we can get some new ideas that we might try when our own are getting a little stale!  

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    About me...

    I am a writer, coach, and teacher, and I love capturing life's many moments through writing, whether that be journalling, blogging, poetry, or essay.  I have always found the written word as a natural way for me to express what lies within.  

    This is the space where we get real.  I will write about my life experiences and things that I find my clients encounter in their daily lives.   

    What's real for you? What would you like me to write about?  Feel free to share with me topics you would like to see discussed and please join in the dialogue through the comment section. Your engagement makes the blog a much richer place to hang out!

    Thank you for joining me on this journey!!    

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Barb Klein
Inspired Possibility
585-705-8740
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