Today was unbearably hot.
Simple, to the point, hot.
One of the reasons I moved to Santa Barbara was a desire of living in a slightly cooler climate than the often crippling heat of Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley. Dreams of ocean breezes and cool fogged in mornings had me hooked from day one. But today... today (and yesterday, and the day before yesterday) became stagnant with miserable warmth, and as a result, my MOOD was teetering on the edge of stagnant and miserable. Life truly presented a real opportunity to test my desire for joy and love, as well as my level of ease in pivoting my life from one styled in angst, to one styled in love.
Here's a bit how the process went:
First, I honored my angst. It is, afterall, a reminder that I am more than just this body and this world, but that I am a spirit being part of something much greater than myself. That, and, it was a warning sign that my thoughts and emotions and beliefs were veering off course from love.
After a simple thank you under my breath, I turned to to my inner self and asked the simple question, what do I desire? Cold air, kind weather, cool breezes, ease in sleeping, walking breathing.
Next, I counted my blessings: 1) Wow...i'm so lucky that warm weather is all I'm dealing with right now, since so many of my friends and friends of friends are having to evacuate their homes from fires, or stay inside for fear of flash flood warnings and tornadoes. 2) I am healthy enough to find comfort from the heat by taking a walk, sitting in the cooler grass at the park, and driving my nicely air conditioned car around town to cool down. 3) I have easy access to cold water at my disposal with my nice refreshing shower, whereby I can easily cool down and get some sleep.
Finally, I said a quick prayer. Thank you God for my life, my blessings, and the choice to experience this world how I desire. Thank you for cold air, cool breezes, and cold water. Thank you for love, and for working with me to style my life in it.
The simplicity of the pivot process is that, really...the heat doesn't necessarily instantly go away. But its power over my emotions does. And in any situation, no matter what it is, you have a choice. And for me, I choose a love styled life every time. Some days are easier than others, some pivot opportunities easier than others...but in the end, the choice is ours. And that in and of itself is a beautiful thing.