My heart smiles

It is in emptying ourselves of our ambitions that we are filled; it is in being grounded in our own earthly inspirations that we come most closely in touch with the Divine spirit within us. Diane Walker Contemplative Photography

When I began to write on this blog in March of 2007 I began with the intent to 'write frequently'. After a short time of infrequent writing, I changed my intent to 'write daily'. And every day I turned up and committed to the process of writing daily. Now, the habit of writing here every day is embedded in my body. I don't question it. I don't look for excuses to avoid it. It just is part of my day, part of my journey, part of my growth, my evolution, my being who I am meant to be.

Before I set the intention to write daily, I had set the intent of what this blog is all about. Positive energy, affirmation, thoughts, ideas. And, a loving and honest reflection of my journey -- my intent was to teach myself and those who came to visit through my being and doing -- aware, conscious, loving and kind of myself and my journey. You know, walk my talk.

Over the course of the two+ years I've been writing here, I have had the gift of people dropping by to visit, of connecting in deep ways with some, of meeting fellow travellers on this path of deepening my human experience.

I am blessed.

Yesterday, along with three women whose blogs I connect with daily and whom I share a lively and loving online conversation, I started an online ecourse to deepen my spiritual practice at Spirituality and Practice. The first step in this ecourse is to "Set your intention".

What is my intention in my spiritual practice?

Deep question.

On Wednesday, I taught a self-esteem course at the shelter where I work. One of the participants asked, "How important is doing in feeling good about yourself?"

"Extremely important," I told him. “The something doesn’t have to be ‘great’ or ‘big’ or monumental. The 'do something' can be as simple as setting a goal that everyday you will get outside and go for a walk. Or, that everyday you will do one thing to move you closer to your goal – whatever that goal is – to get out of the Di. To find a job. To get into rehab. Doing something everyday that is positive and affirming of you as a human being, strengthens you and your will to become more than the label, 'homeless'. It speaks to your spirits desire to create empowering and positive changes in your life.”

We went on to talk about the power of goals and acting on our ideas. We don’t know if an idea is a good or bad, idea, I said. If it measures well against our values, our principles, beliefs, desires, dreams, goals – we need to act on it. When we act on it, when we put our ideas in motion, we are also teaching ourselves, -- I can take charge. I can do.

And, we are teaching ourselves, I am worth more than sitting here on the second floor of a homeless shelter all day doing nothing. We are teaching ourselves, I have value.

I suggested to the group that they set an intention for the next two and a half weeks of the course they are taking. The example I gave was: My intention is to acknowledge every day, I have value and am willing to find value in all things, even being homeless.

And then, to make a commitment to identify one thing, every morning, that you can do that day to give yourself a sense of self-worth.

Every night, write down one thing about being homeless that has value in your life. It could be, I have to learn to ask for help. Or, it gives me a chance to be courageous every day. Or, I don't have to wash my own dishes or cook my own meals or....

One thing.

Just one thing a day.

And that's the thing about intention. It doesn't have to be grand, or monumental. It has to be 'known'. To set an intention, we have to take action.

Like life, like being connected to my spiritual essence, like taking part in an ecourse.

I have to take action.

Sometimes, action comes to me in leaps and bounds. Sometimes, I crawl with shaky limbs into an act of will -- to change, to heal, to grow, to evolve, to become, to be.

Regardless of my intent, regardless of my goal -- it is in doing what soothes and inspires and teaches me, I grow and learn and become my most magnificent self.

I love Diane's quote at the beginning of this post because it speaks to the Divine within each of us. My ambition may be to be a New York Times bestselling author. To get there, my intent must be to empty myself of the ambition to 'be' someone or something I am not today, so that I open myself up to getting down to the daily business of doing what I need to do to get where I want to go. Write -- even if my goal begins with " to write everyday, one line, or one hour, or one page."

Somewhere, sometime, somehow, I must begin.

I am blessed.

When I was in that relationship that almost killed me, I lost my spiritual path. I let it go. I let it slide. I stepped away from it. I turned my back on it. I.... Whatever I did to lose my way does not make a difference in my life today. Acknowledging that I have strayed far from my spiritual path, that I have drifted away from my spiritual True North brings me out of the fog of yearning for some undefined place I cannot see but think I want to get to if only.... he hadn't, it wasn't, I wasn't, I didn't, I hadn't, I used to, I couldn't, I can't...

Today, what is important is, I acknowledge I am willing to let go of wanting and step into being open to doing what it takes to reclaim my sense of wonder, my sense of deep listening to spirit within me. To connect with Spirit and live in love with my Divine essence.

To do that, I must set my intention. My intention keeps me on path. It is my compass point always pulling me back to the magnetic field of possibility that lies within the longitude and latitude of my desire to awaken to the mystical truth of living as One with the Divine.

My intention is to smile from my heart and to listen deeply to Spirit moving within me.

Today, one thing I can do to live my intention is to stop three times during the day, take a deep breath, consciously focus my thoughts on seeing, feeling, tasting, sensing my heart smiling and to sit quietly for one minute in the wonder of the moment.

The question is: What's your intention for the day? What kind of day do you want to create? What's one thing you can do to be present to your intention unfolding?