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Thursday, October 6, 2011

Fearless Floating



Did you ever get an idea and then when you follow through with it it turns out all wrong? “Huh?” You say, screwing your face up into a confused mud puddle. You taste the soup and it’s too salty; you compare the photo to your painting and yours looks like a one dimensional rendition of cartoon meets real world. You date a dream boat only to find out that he has leaks. Not only is he not sea worthy… he’s not you worthy.

Then there are bigger choices…you choose your career based on economics and availability, or maybe you were pressured into this choice by an over bearing parent or a critical spouse. You sign up for classes, ignoring your gut which seems to be screaming “run!” and a few years later you’ve earned a framed document (worth five bucks) declaring you a “fill in the blank” specialist…something you never wanted to be. Now you’re thirty thousand dollars in debt with student loans, and depressed at the notion of spending the rest of your life doing something that drains you…when all you ever really wanted to do was train horses.

Life is full of choices, detours, and unexpected endings and sometimes no matter how careful we are things can go really screwy. This is where the flow comes in. I’m a firm believer in going with the flow. I’m not talking about having no direction. I’m talking about doing all that you can to make something happen and then putting it down. It is at this point that you jump into the river, and go with the flow.

We have limited vision; we can’t see the future; therefore we sometimes have limited dreams. Our plan may sound good, but it just might be less than what we are really capable of. Oprah is a fine example of this. She never would have dreamed that her future would unfold in such a grand manner. God had more in store for her than she had for herself. She did what she could and then she went with the flow.

Right now I’m in the flow with my first novel. I’m doing all that I can do to get it to an agent. I’ve also got some things lined up in case I choose to go with the self-publishing option; although at this moment I’m not ready to do that. There is a little voice inside of me that tries to make me feel anxious about the future of my book. Hell, my little voice doesn’t stop there; it tries to make me feel anxious about everything! But…I’m ignoring that little voice because I’m busy floating on this river.

The point I’m making is this: If life is keeping you guessing, sending you down strange alleyways, or setting up roadblocks, then there is a good chance that life is trying to communicate with you. Keep doing what you need to do, but don’t panic, and don’t push it. When you make decisions from a fearful place you just might end up selling yourself short. Breathe, dance, have a glass of wine, or take up yo-yo surfing! Do anything, but don’t jump ahead of the flow.

Man…I’m awfully teachy today. I must need to hear this stuff;)





24 comments:

Karen Wojcik Berner said...

Going with the flow is something I have a hard time with, coming from the magazine world of deadlines and word counts. I am trying to free myself of those constraints...I'm working on it. To freedom!

Leah Griffith said...

Oh I can imagine Karen. You've been trained to avoid the flow! LOL!!

Jodi Chapman - Soul Speak said...

This is exactly what I needed to hear today, Leah. Thank you. ♥

Leah Griffith said...

Aw Jodi, Thanks. I'm so glad that this helped. I'm still working on my list of what I would do if I wasn't afraid, which was inspired by your blog earlier this week. <3

Julia said...

Leah. Rockin' writer girl. Damn. Can I just say how completely touched I am by the few things I've had the honor of reading of yours. Seriously. And this particular piece...surely you wrote it for just me. I've been flailing & floundering all over the place lately, panicking, doubting, second-guessing my every move. I've felt seriously stuck, kind of like a massive semi-truck is on my chest, pinning me down, making it impossible to move.

Thank you for reminding me that it's time to stop pushing--it's time to find that current again or, better yet, let it find me.

And thank you for your comment this morning on my blog...what an honor.

Deep bows to you, dear one. So very good to have connected. May that novel of yours flow out into the world with ease...

With love,

Julia

P.S: I'm in the process of putting a book together of my poetry (and other writings) and this mind of mine is really having a blast trying to talk me out of it. Fuck it.

Leah Griffith said...

Dear Sweet Julia, thank you for honoring me with your visit. I love your analogy of the truck…I feel like that so often. We need to remind each other of the truth and keep one another straight. Life is so messy…so often;)
Don’t let anything hold you back Julia…attend to what is calling to you and screw the doubts!!

Brooke said...

What a powerful post, Leah! Wow, so glad to have found you. I can't wait to ride down river with you. It is time to party. You are helping me to understand divine timing, and that it is okay if I haven't dusted off my novel yet. It isn't time--cause frankly, life is happening, and I can speak honestly when I say, I am not going to miss another fucking moment of it in that foggy fog. I'd rather dance with you to that music you got goin' on in here. Let's leave you in charge of the music!

Leah Griffith said...

Brooke! You bring such a smile to my face. I’m thrilled to have found you too. We’ll be splashing around to loud music together for a while. I don’t want to miss any more important moments. Even when I was present I wasn’t present…it was nuts. Anyway, yes, I think it is divine timing that we met. Good things are happening Brooke.

JANU said...

Leah...your post always makes me smile because there are things you put there in your post which is also on our mind, but we have not been quite able to put them in words as you do. I have been going with the flow....don't know where it is going to lead me. Fingers crossed.

Leah Griffith said...

Who knows Janu, as long as you are peaceful. There is no happiness where there is no peace;) Thanks for your visit, it's always nice to see you.

Savira Gupta said...

Wow ... just what I needed to hear.. it came with a punch for me!
Thank you

Leah Griffith said...

Hi Savira, fancy meeting you here! I'm glad that my post provided you with what you needed today. I'm also looking forward to getting to know you better;)

Debbie Maxwell Allen said...

I love your 'teachy' mode! You always encourage me with your take on life & writing. Keep it up!

~Debbie

Leah Griffith said...

Thanks Debbie! I really do teach myself when I write like this. Funny huh? I'm my own student. LOL!!

Bongo said...

Life has sent me on a roller coaster ride..wishing it would stop already....As always...XOXOXOXOX

Leah Griffith said...

LOL! I love the roller coaster; it's the Merry-Go-Round that makes me sick...all that spinning;)
XOXO

Cathy said...

i know i can i know i can i know i can...

Jayne said...

Oh, Leah, such an eloquent piece of writing, to which I can most definitely relate. I'd love to find myself in a flowing river, as apposed the mud that I often encounter. All of life's interruptions tend to choke my flow. But reading this, you remind me that it's OK to step out of the river, as long you dive right back in!

Beautiful, my friend. Wishing you a river without any dams, or at least minor ones that you can easily flow around. ;)

Leah Griffith said...

Cathy...you not only can, you always do!

Leah Griffith said...

Hi Jayne, mud wrestling is really popular now, but unfortunately it really mucks up the river. I’ve just ended a three year mud wrestling tour and I have to tell you that I’ve never met such a bunch of pigs. Of course they loved the mud, which gave them a strong advantage, but I won in the end by yelling, “Here comes the big bad wolf!”
Yeah…this river is a refreshing change;)

Julia said...

To keeping each other straight, to screwing the doubts! And to dancing and flowing and knowing we're in this together--what a comfort.

Thank you for your encouragement & wisdom, Leah.

Sending you love this evening,

Julia

Leah Griffith said...

Here here, Leah raises her glass to Julia's. Ting.
To life!
This is good stuff, what year is it? Julia? You're supposed to sip not chug. LOL!!!
XOXO

Julia said...

No more sipping...I'm chugging! Hehehe. You're cracking me up. Thank you for putting a big smile on my face. :)

Ting ting! Here here!

SPLASH!

Leah Griffith said...

Julia, I'm a chugger too! I like getting to the point quickly;)

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