Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Intention Instead of Outcome


Today is the Fall Equinox, a time when we harvest what we’ve raised and yet experience the death of green all around us. I’m having mixed emotions, so I turned to some of my spirit guides for advice.

First, I checked in with one of my favorite wise women, Sandra Ingerman. She suggests:
“This time of year is a great time to let drop from you what is no longer needed to return to the earth to be composted creating new life. For with all types of death – the little deaths we experience through life as well as physical death – something new is reborn from what dies. The cycle of life and death is one unbroken circle…”

She recommends creating a ceremony to release expectations.” I find for some of us letting go of expectations feels like giving up. But what if it is giving up to something better? What if we hold an intention of what we want to experience while at the same time we trust that the way our desires and intentions manifest is greater than what we allowed ourselves to imagine? The key is don’t let go of your intentions and focus. But sometimes we have to let go of the outcome. Try working with this in the time of fall where the plants and trees are giving back to the earth the old so that the new can be born.”

I’ve been expending a lot of energy worrying about the outcome of several things in my life recently, so this idea really hit home for me. While I cleaned the barn today, I took some time to really think about what my expectations were and how they cause pain and self-doubt when I don’t get what I want. If the outcome isn’t something I can control, than there’s no point in trying to hold on to it. It’s kind of like the maple tree that I was standing under. Even though the weather is still warm, its leaves are turning brown and falling faster and sooner than usual this year. Maybe Sandra Ingerman is right: My soul and the soul of the world is working to give me greater gifts than I can imagine.

It reminded me of Mary Oliver’s poem, “Song For Autumn”:
“In the deep fall
don't you imagine the leaves think how
comfortable it will be to touch
the earth instead of the
nothingness of air and the endless
freshets of wind? And don't you think
the trees themselves, especially those with mossy,
warm caves, begin to think
of the birds that will come - six, a dozen - to sleep
inside their bodies?”

And thinking of that eloquent wisdom stirred up my sense of anticipation of all the enjoyable activities that will come with colder weather and shorter days. After all, with each ending comes a new beginning.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank you for a lovely post!

Grey Horse Matters said...

Food for thought and age old wisdom in all these lines. Great post.

Deejbrown said...

Lovely post. I confess I have come to despise the word "outcomes." Takes the fun right outa things.

detroit dog said...

lovely.

Lori Skoog said...

Pickled Beets.... very easy

Boil beets with skin on them. Drain and remove skin. Slice and put in a bowl. I add raw onions in rings.
(I'm not good at following recipes).

In a pan, combine 1/4 cup water, 1/3 cup vinegar, 1/4 cup sugar (I had quite a few beets, so did 4 times these measurements). Here's the secret...shake in a little cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. of salt and ground cloves (I do not measure this part..had no ground cloves and used regular cloves, which I removed before I put this liquid on the beets) Anyway, you bring this to a boil so the flavors blend, and pour it over the beets. After we eat some of them, I had hard boiled eggs and pickle them. DELICIOUS! I will post a photo for you today.

Victoria Cummings said...

Thanks to Everyone - and to Lori - I love pickled beets but I've never had the nerve to make them myself. So, you make it sound easy. I'll let you know how they come out.

Lisa said...

It's lovely reading your blog. Thanks for another flowing post.

John and Regina Zdravich said...

Very well done -- puts everything in perspective.....

billie said...

For some reason as I was reading, something my son used to say came into my head. When he was very young (barely 2) he talked non-stop and often made up words that we incorporated into our family's vocabulary.

He used to talk about being a "campucketer" and going "campucketing." Hearing him use the word in context with his own action, it wasn't hard to sort out what it meant, and we still use it fairly regularly. To boldly march along, fully engaged with the moment, but with a purpose too.

Sounds like that's what you're doing! Enjoy the season.

Callie said...

Good post, Victoria, Happy Mabon....

Sandra said...

Thank you so much, Victoria, you made my day with this post. I needed to hear this.
Sincerely, Sandra

Anonymous said...

This is a terrific post! Reflection doesnt have to hurt.