A Life of Appreciation is A Life Well Lived

It is a beautiful spring day outside. Butterflies abound. Flower are opening. A slight breeze is helping hold back the heat, which suddenly returned to the island last weekend.

We’ve fallen into a quarantine routine in my household, which is much harder on my husband (who does not like to be contained) than it is on me. I already work from home, and other than my deep need to be out in nature, I can be quite introverted and hibernate-y when I’m in writer’s mode.

I’m in writer’s mode this month. It was the only thing that seemed to make sense at a time where the world is going through collective upheaval and transformation. It’s what I do when loss and change come: I write. Life is a process whose nature I best understand through exploring my experience within the greater process via my words.

These are strange times to be living through. Unprecedented and uncertain. I’ve made peace with the idea we don’t know what we don’t know, and it’s okay not to know right now: How to feel. What to think. How the world might be reshaped by a pandemic.

I’m embracing the principle of not knowing as I’ve felt an instinctive desire to come back into myself, stay inwards and allow the universe to inform my heart and guide me through these times.

I’ve learned in recent years there is a divine order and timing to all things, and as much as I stepped into 2020 with plans to expand my presence by doing more public talks and hands on teaching— now is not the time.

Things will be what they will be as they will be, and for now I am content to simply be me.

I’ve been thinking a lot about simplicity lately and how simple things are at the core of a life well lived. A vase of colorful flowers. The sound of bird songs in the morning. The richness in a cup of french onion soup. That first glass of wine. The love of a good dog.

Since moving to Kauai in 2017, there have been many times where I’ve been so caught up in my bigger picture (who and what will I become after transplanting to an island at midlife in search of authentic reinvention?) that I wander away from appreciating life’s innate goodness. Each time I do, I’m invited to find my way back to an essence of gratitude and remember no matter how big, or not big, my life becomes—

A life of appreciation is a life well lived.

I’m appreciating this April: The newborn chicks who hatched on our property— they ramble around the yard all day with Mama Hen pecking and peeping. Emerald green views of the jungle outside my window. Having a full cupboard with a few extra tasty “stay at home treats,” to bring a splash of festivity to meals.

Quiet evenings. The way the clouds light up before sunset. God’s love.

Instead of getting ahead of myself and wondering what the future holds, I’m also trying to appreciate exactly where and who I am right now: How grief’s strange elasticity forever transformed and reshaped my path. The courage it has taken to stay with my reinvention journey and place unconditional trust in the process. Completing my 8th book. How hard I try to stay in integrity with my authentic self and heart wisdom.

Someday life will return to a busier pace. New creative vision will rebirth inside of me and the timing will be right to bring it out and be more present in the world. The days won’t feel so strange, going to the store won’t feel like an event, and we’ll gather with my parents for a family meal once again.

For now, I’m allowing the quiet. Retreating into my inner sanctum of magic, muse and imagination. Having delightful conversations with the cosmos. Making art out of the every day.

Listening to the flowers hymn brightly outside, content to embody the essence of love.