At the start of the year, I decided that I’d spend January getting into the flow.
Getting Into The Flow – January Update
What I Decided
At the start of the month I decided that I would be:
- Creating a plan and trying to stick to it – so I had a date wise plan for writing/ blogging and other activities. I meticulously scheduled these into a calendar.
- Focusing on rituals and practices – sticking to my existing practices and adding meaningful practices and rituals to my daily life.
I tried to to achieve this by using these four steps:
- Plan purposefully
- Prepare prayerfully
- Proceed positively
- Pursue persistently.
What Life Decided
I can say with all honesty that I went through the first three steps. But I failed when it came to pursuing the plans.
One of the major reasons for failing was the fact that I have what appears to be shoulder tendonitis. This causes constant dull ache my left arm and sometimes a shooting pain that leaves me feeling awful. Since I’m left-handed and do quite a lot of housework, it’s hard to rest my arm as much as I would like to. My plans included writing and blogging and all writing and typing only aggravates the pain. So I had to cut back on both of these activities.
I felt frustrated, regretful and guilty about not sticking to my plans in the very first month of the year. Until I realized that perhaps this was perhaps what really my choice of word for the year was teaching me!
A few days into January, as I sat on our balcony writing my Morning Pages, I spotted a big kite soaring in the sky. I hadn’t seen this majestic bird for a few years and here it was suddenly seeming to float in the sky. Was there a message for me in this? It seemed to fit in with my word of the year and I realized that perhaps it was a reminder for me to let go and allow the ‘wind’ to take me where it willed. But I soon forgot about this and tried to go back to following my plan until my arm started acting up!
What I Learned
I have learned that I need to trust in the wisdom of my body and my emotions. I have to let go. I need to learn to rest. We are living in anxious times and allowing ourselves to rest and play makes it easier on our minds and bodies.
I also learned to be more open to the leading of God’s spirit. As I reflected on scripture and spent more quiet time, I was reminded that there are still many areas of my life that need healing and this work must continue.
Letting go of notions of perfectionism and long ingrained feelings of guilt that engulf me when I am not doing something ‘productive’ is truly what getting into the flow is all about.
I’m also trying hard to allow love and kindness to guide my decisions with regard to myself, my family , my work and community.
Getting into the flow means that I must live a little more easy.
This is a reminder I received in my inbox – part of a piece from John O’Donohue:
You have traveled too fast over false ground;
Now your soul has come to take you back.
Draw alongside the silence of stone
Until its calmness can claim you.
Be excessively gentle with yourself.
I’m listening to this wisdom and getting into the flow.
How’s your Word of the Year translating into your life so far?
Linking in to One Word 2022 Linkup + GIVEAWAY – January (lisanotes.com)
Oh this is completely lovely. What a great reminder, whoever we are and whatever grand plans we think we are failing to execute. May you continue to treat yourself with gentleness and compassion each day, and listen always to that wise body of yours, who has already carried you so far. Sometimes I forget how much my body has done for me. Its good to remember.
Tess Baldwin recently posted..the wall
Thank you, Tess. I’m glad this spoke to you. Take care of yourself.
Corinne Rodrigues recently posted..Do You Follow The Rules?
Well my word of the year was SMILE because I thought it was more action oriented than accepting things for what they are and allowing life to take its course with grace .
Sadly within 15 days on January starting my whole family was down with CoVid which didn’t leave us much to smile about .
Yet when we all suffered and recovered simultaneously I could actually smile smugly that we finished it once and for all in just 15 days unlike other families that had to extend quarantine days till everyone was done and dusted !
I hope your shoulder and arm pains subside and you feel better soon.
I totally understand what you mean by feeling guilty for not being able to follow through plans and goals. I have been feeling the same too and I ended up writing about it on my blog today.
Reema Dsouza recently posted..Plans, Morning routine and things not going my way
Yes, your word wasn’t the letter “p” – nor was it “purpose,” “preparedness,” “planning,” or even “prayer.” It was flow. Flow freely, flights of fancy; flow fearlessly. Feel it all, as all flows through you. Thoughts flow. Feelings flow. Ink flows… Life flows. It was a good and unusual word. You were fighting it, weren’t you? I wonder if that isn’t what I’ve been doing, too.
Holly Jahangiri recently posted..My #OneWord365 for 2022
Making it through 3 out of the 4 steps is really good though. 🙂 And realizing that not finishing step 4 perhaps WAS executing the plan after all is so insightful. It sounds to me like you had a successful first month with FLOW (not that it’s about measuring “success” or not, whatever that is). I spot a few lessons in here I can use for me too about RELEASE.
Sorry about your tendonitis though. That’s painful to have to work around. Take care, Corinne!
Getting back into the flow can be hard, especially when we have setbacks. Thanks for sharing.
Cindy Davis recently posted..A month of focus in review
My father used to tell me something along the lines of “man plans, God disposes”. As a child, it irritated me, but as I grew older, I see the wisdom in his words. We can make all of our plans, but then things/life happens. And instead of fighting it or ourselves {which I am often guilty of doing}, we learn to go with the flow. Reading your post immediately reminded me of my father, so I thought I’d share his wisdom with you 🙂 Hope your shoulder heals soon, Corinne!
Modern Gyspy recently posted..4 binge worthy weekend reads
I love your word of the year. And I love how the universe sent the kite to remind you to flow and let your wings take you where you need to go.
Dear Cory,
Sending you happy, healing vibes for a steady, smooth recovery.
More often than not our plans have a way of crashing mid-flight, and when we choose a word as powerful as Flow, it helps soothe the dejection.
I have realised our body know the best, and staying tuned in to it’s needs is like getting a step closer to our true selves. Therefore, each day I try and give gratitude to every body part/organ and love to the aching parts – shoulders, back, knees. It works wonders and I feel supported. And I am sure so does the body too. Otherwise I realise we take it so much for granted.
As you know my WOTY is also Balanced Flow and as of now I’m glad I have been able to be in synch with it and plug in the lessons it’s bringing my way.
It’s lovely to do a recap after a month. Maybe I shall too.
Thanks for sharing the lovely poem and writing this piece amidst the pain.
Love.
Natasha recently posted..Wordle | Wordled: #WhatDoYouSee #Fiction
I hope your shoulder is feeling better now, Corinne.
I love this post, not the fact that how your meticulous planning and preparations were thwarted by life, but the learning you have derived from an unexpected turn of events. I also liked “be excessively gentle with yourself”. We all need that. Be gentle to the self. Always.
❤️
Vinitha recently posted..Weekly Gratitude – 5 #SoulfulSunday
Oh my…I also had shoulder tendinitis (also left like yours). It started quite suddenly. Woke up one September morning last year with shooting pain with certain movements. I couldn’t reach behind my back, a movement I do when I shower. So I had unscrubbed upper back for about 3 months, haha. Yeah it took 3 months to get better. My left shoulder is still not as it used to, but I can at least scrub my back properly now and also lift a bit of weights. Did you go through therapy for it? I didn’t. Just rested it for 3 months (no lifting weights and stretching back).
‘…being more open to the leading of God’s spirit.’ That’s the only way to live happily… there is no other way. Sometimes I find myself resisting things that are not in my control. When I fail, I feel stressed. The best way is to let go things that I can’t change and trust in God. Corinne, your ‘flow’ of thoughts is inspiring and enlightening!
Love this, Corinne, and seeing the kite and thinking “a reminder for me to let go and allow the ‘wind’ to take me where it willed.” is so perfect for your word, “flow.”
Hope you are recovering from the tendinitis and feeling much better.
My word for the year is SURRENDER.
Corinne, I hope you are doing better now and your health has improved. I can relate to this post in particular during the year’s start I told myself will work on my ebook of short stories but unfortunately, I was detected with COVID. Though mild symptoms, it needed lots of rest in getting back and grappling with anxiety, of course. Absolutely love this poem and agree we tend to be too hard on the self. Hope we all triumph and be better.
Being obedient to God’s call is far more important than any plans we make for ourselves. May you very blessed as you follow God’s lead.