Heading South

The day before leaving Durango, Josie and I were walking along the Animus River and fell down a rabbit’s hole, the White Rabbit Books and Curiosities to be more precise.  What a magical place it is.  We’d passed this little treasure many times before but never stopped in.  I’ll be sharing more about the White Rabbit another time, but felt it was worth mentioning now.  We had our first snow fall last week in Durango and, so we decided it was time to head south to a warmer climate.  Our current plan is to reconnect with our good friends Bob and Ruth we know from when we lived in Ely, Minnesota and meet up with them in the City of Rocks State Park in New Mexico.  We left Durango Saturday morning following Eric and Lauren to La Rito, New Mexico, where we met up with their friends Ross and Brittany to do some rock climbing and camping.  I continue to be amazed at all the little niches (natures beautiful landscapes) we find in the middle of nowhere.  Places that by first appearances to look plain or ordinary until you venture more deeply into its surrounding area.  I like to equate it metaphorically to the journey within ourselves.  On the surface we tend to look at ourselves as just plain or ordinary.  Which in fact is farthest from the truth.  You’re an amazing person with lots to share with the world.  We often try too hard during our lifetime to impress others intending it to validate our own worthiness.  While this is a natural way for humans to evolve, it is not the most efficient nor most successful approach to life.  If all your time is spent trying to please others instead of exploring and nurturing your own creativeness and curiosities, you’ll find yourself sitting alone with an emptiness that we call depression.  The key to life is to get out of your shitty little pity party and help others or do something good for the environment, be of service.   Witnessing others in relationship has given me much to contemplate in my own relationship with Josie over the course of our lifetime together.  I’ll just say it hasn’t been easy living and traveling in such close quarters, but we’ve grown by leaps and bounds both as a couple and as individuals since undertaking this G.A.S. journey.  One very powerful thing that has sustained our marriage and commitment to one another is our communications. Our willingness to continue learning more about how positive interactions between us not only as a couple, but as individuals helps us respond and engage, rather than react to and blame the world around us. At first glance these two words, respond and react might not appear much different.  However, if you delve a little deeper in to these two powerful little words, you’ll discover that one instills you with power, while the other gives it away.   It’s from this awareness that you’re able to better cope with or be empowered in the everyday challenges you face.  This morning we listened to a podcast called “The evolutionary power of mindful communications” at “Daily Good, New that Inspires” and was excited to share it with you.  My hope is that you’ll find this information useful and incorporate it into your everyday language and become witness to the change you wish to see in the world.