I was reading Julie Ackerman in Our Daily Bread When my family and I lived in Wisconsin, we had bird feeders outside every window. It was always so cool to look out on the white snow and see bright gold and black Evening Grossbeaks covering the ground and on our feeders. It was the serenity and t he beauty that got me. Peaceful. But there was an evil preditor that was constantly lurking in the shadows - wanting what was not meant for him. We had a squirrel that was hell-bent on getting into those 'bird' feeders. He tried coming at that feeder from every direction but without success. He would race up the pole, so we put grease on it. He would run up from the ground and ramp off our house to get to it. But alas, no dice. Finally we put an upside down cone on the metal pole and he became discouraged and went back to the wonderful corn cobs we had out for him in the first place.
The squirrel's tireless attempts to get what isn't meant to be his calls to mind our own natural passions and talents. We've been gifted areas in which we excel and we many times go away from that into something someone else thinks we should be in. In our coaching class, Patricia Drain talkeds about the Stone Theory, where you cast a stone into a very calm, placid lake and the ripples go out from there. The ripples are the things that happen when life comes at us - going to school, getting married, having kids, buying a house and on and on. We get far away from our true center-our core. Sometimes we look at others and think, "I can do that-it looks like fun. It brings in alot of money." If you aren't living your passion, if you aren't happy in your current space, then now is the time find those ingredients that will make you happy and pursue them. This is your second chance! Turn away from trying to get up that birdfeeder where you aren't meant to be.
There is hope. There are many people out there that can help you, whether a mentor or a coach - now is the time to re-evaluate and get back to your basics. In the book, "Laid Off? Don't Stress! How to Get From Mad to Glad." you will find inspirational stories of people from various walks of life who have made successful transitions from unexpected AND expected situations. By reading about how others have manifested their new life, it inspires you to be more creative to move on or to simply add sidelines that will fill those core passions. I've recently become a Certified Career Coach, "What Should I Be When I Grow Up, Now That I'm 40, 50, & 60." You see, sometimes when we come up against unexpected difficulties, i.e. laid off, divorce, illness, death of a loved one, retirement - any of those can put you in limbo. You lose your direction and your purpose, so you have to re-evaluate and move forward. It's exciting when you have clarity and have focus and that is where a coach or mentor comes in real handy. Just like the squirrel, you have your own special feeding ground. Just for you.
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