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Sunday, June 5, 2011

BITE SIZED

     Most life projects and tasks, goals and journeys, visions and evolutions are all too big to digest at once. I believe we are meant to take small bites. We can break things down into steps and easily accomplish piecemeal what seems entirely impossible as a complete structure. After all, that's how life happens, isn't it? One small effort at a time one day at a time?
     What is overwhelming me today and how can I break it down into more managable bites? And perhaps more importantly, why do I feel the need to be such a glutton? To push beyond my comfortable limits, as if that proves something; what does it really prove? That I can overextend and go beyond comfort to the point of pain and distraction, that I can live on nerves, on edge, that I can teeter indefinitely at the end of my rope? Good for me.
     The other option is to feel satisfied with bite sized accomplishments in the direction of the bigger picture and be pleased with reasonable, steady progress and each small gain. In that case, I can still maintain my peace and have the pleasure of experiencing long distance energy and a sustainable pace. I used to think it was the thing to burn hard and fast, to live aggressively which I considered to be passionate, and to push it to the end of every possible limit for as long as possible. The trouble with that approach is that I burn out eventually and become good for nothing and a shell of my own vitality. There's some exhilaration in the racy speed and high intensity, but not so much fun in all of that, and certainly no relaxation, truth be told. So today, I prefer steady and bite sized. I find I get alot more done, and enjoy the doing of it all the more.

I take my time today and stop the rush and the push. I enjoy making reasonable efforts in the right direction and feel the satisfaction of steady, sustainable progress.