CHAPTER 4 – CUSTOMISING MY LIFE

Designing and building a life that reflected the real me

I’d eliminated the things from my life that I didn’t enjoy, and minimised the time spent with people who didn’t make me feel good. The result was that I now had the space and time for the things that did reflect the kind of life I wanted to work towards.  But, where to start?

For inspiration, I reviewed my life – looking for the happiest moments.

I’d recently returned from an overseas holiday to the United States and Mexico where I toured the Mayan ruins in the Yucatan Peninsula, with author, scientist and spiritual teacher Gregg Braden.  I’d also travelled solo through parts of Northeast and Southwest America.

The inspiration phase

I reflected on the aspects of this holiday that had made it so special; I’d visited archaeological ruins that had fascinated me since I was a small child.  I was in the company of someone who inspired me.  I was surround by like minded people.  Aside from the tour with Gregg, I had made no definitive plans.  I freely explored places and activities that I was drawn to.  I was not hampered by day-to-day responsibilities, routines or timeframes.  Being a once in a lifetime experience, I was more liberal with my expenditure.

As a result I had the best six weeks of my life.  Magical experiences that I could never have planned occurred.  People embraced me with open arms, showering me with generosity.  I met people that would become life long friends.  Opportunities opened up in which I saw places that I’d only dreamed of.  My journey seemed almost effortless.  Life flowed.  For the first time I embraced the feelings of joy, freedom and awe in life itself.

Was it possible to live a life centred around this way of being?

I found that it is one thing throwing all caution to the wind in a foreign country for a few weeks, and quite another applying it to your day-to-day life, indefinitely.  I was terrified, but my recent experience of genuinely feeling joy and freedom was beckoning me and I wanted to heed that call.  But how to bridge that gap?

The building phase

I started by including elements from my holiday into my day-to-day life.

I turned to the internet and found numerous lectures by Gregg.  I thought it would be nice to have something to occupy my hands as I listened, so I started to knit, an activity I had enjoyed as a child.

I listened and I knitted.  I was in heaven.

Inspired, I continued to ‘fill’ my days with creative activities, listening to inspirational lectures and documentaries, as well as freelance work that came my way.  I had plenty of spare time, as full-time work had dried up.  When opportunities presented themselves I explored those that I felt drawn to, rather than taking up offers just for the sake of filling in time as I’d done in the past.

The result

Each day wasn’t a bed of roses.  There were many moments in which I experienced anxiety, panic and depression (refer to Chapter 3 for Emotional Release techniques).  But within a few weeks, I noticed that I could think more clearly.  I developed more of a sense of myself.  My inner voice began to emerge.

The biggest surprise was that the structure of my day had begun to look a lot more like that of my ‘ideal’ day (refer to Chapter 2).