A Question of Purpose

A practical, conceptual foundation that would have you build a desired, desirable life of substance with style is ultimately a question of purpose. One might begin by asking these standard questions: what would I do if I knew I couldn't fail? If I were financially free, where would my interests lie?

More specifically, in terms of desire, what do I want to do? In terms of ability, what can I do? In terms of purpose, what should I do? In terms of need, what must I do? Obviously, such questions as these are best answered when one feels rested and relaxed, refreshed and restored.

Sentence prompts can also help: e.g., the seven things I most want to do in this life are ... the five things I can do most easily are ... the three things that I feel I should do are ... and the one thing I must do is ... These prompts need not be completed in any particular order - only that they be completed.

Letting Go, Letting Be

Knowing that life is a [....], my purpose in life is to ...

When I did this exercise, I came up with three responses, all of which resonate deeply with three different aspects of me: Life is a beach; Life is a woman; and Life is a process. Knowing that life is a beach, my purpose in life is to ... live my life to the fullest. Knowing that life is a woman, my purpose in life is to ... love her with all my heart. Knowing that life is a process, my purpose in life is to ... go with the flow and be a part of this wondrous process.

In less than two minutes, the heart of my soul, being deeply feminine, knew exactly what she wanted from this exercise.

Just before I did this exercise, I received a heart-warming newsletter from a woman accomplished in the visual and healing arts. She had returned from the Peruvian Amazon, where she had spent a month in the wilds with a group of shamans. She remarked: "feeling the grace of the river, the exquisite green of the forest, the warmth of the air, combined with the simplicity and heartfelt presence of the shamans, I decided to pay more attention to my lifestyle, to relax and enjoy more, each and every moment, letting the flow of the river, the Divine breath, to guide and inspire me in each moment and situation."

She went on to say that healing (physical, emotional, spiritual) occurs with a relaxed attitude from a place of humility, faith, surrender, and playfulness. She added: letting go and letting Divine Grace emerge from within is our only task and destiny. In essence, I would agree with her with all my heart and soul. I would, however, qualify her statement somewhat, phrasing it as follows: "letting go is our most important task; letting be is our ultimate destiny."

All that we encounter, and contrive to encounter, contains relevance for soul; all that we experience, and contrive to experience, carries significance for spirit. Paradoxically, however, letting go requires hanging on; letting be requires clapping hands.