Catching Fireflies: Don’t Let Life’s Magic Slip Through Your Fingers
Simplicity, ease, gratitude and the corny stuff are the new hustle
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*We interrupt this regularly scheduled program of limited thoughts and negative thinking to bring you a public service announcement for the soul. I know, it sounds a bit silly. That said, could you step away from the audio track playing in your head for a moment, long enough to give it all a break — and, well, to count your blessings instead?Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be a post about trivializing your life experience. I’m not going to tell you that if you just think happy thoughts — Poof and your troubles will melt like lemon drops. However, if you aren’t catching the shooting stars of magic unfolding all around you each and every moment…well, you’re missing out (been there). OK fine, it appears I am headed down a schmaltzy road, but bear with me…you just might begin to feel better. Don’t be too ‘cool’ for a little sappy-feel-good stuff!You don’t have to write a gratitude journal (but bonus points and a few gold stars for you if you do), but ask yourself — how often does the magic slip unnoticed through your hands? How often do you forget to say thank you to a higher power, whatever that means to you?The truth is, many of us are programmed for depravation. In an effort to collect more: more money, more success, more attention, more likes on social media, more something…we bypass a lot of in the process. We probably miss the majority of it throughout an average day.
I like to believe that we have a whole army of beings acting upon our behalf, looking down upon us trying to protect us, trying to guide us, trying to get us to ‘see the light’.
For me, my spiritual gang is made up of God, my Dad, grandparents, sprinkle in some angels and a few other ascended beings working on behalf of my highest good. We rap regularly: when I put my head down on the pillow each night, right before I pick it up in the morning and assorted moments sprinkled throughout the day. I try not to talk to them only when I need them, but rather to acknowledge the good stuff too, the endless blessings, the answered prayers.Think of all the times throughout the day that you’ve had close calls — maybe you avoided a car accident, or caught yourself before you tripped and fell, or dodged a bullet with a health scare, or avoided any other household or office calamity. It’s like, Phew…and we move on. Hold on a minute, collect those moments right back up and squeeze them hard.Each day we are getting older and each day is a gift — tomorrow isn’t promised to any of us. Things can and do change at the drop of a hat — and you can’t go back in time and do it differently. All we have is our now and this one precious life. So, I don’t know about you, but I’m not letting go of my fairy dust blessings.
And I’ll let you in on a little secret, once you start seeing them, they appear with great fervor…regularly.
I recently lost someone very dear to me — suddenly and without notice. She was someone I had known most of my life, someone who was a mother figure to me and a grandmother figure to my son. She adopted me as her shiksa daughter, including my family in all the Jewish holidays. She knew I liked extra-hard matzoh balls at Passover and made 2 batches to satisfy the preferences of her whole gang. More importantly, she was elegant, kind, loving, sassy, fun…and taught us a lot about taking the high road.It was never convenient for me to attend these holidays, but I rarely missed one throughout the years, And even if I complained to myself here and there about the scheduling inconvenience, at the end of the day, I never regretted it — especially for the last holiday. Within less than a week she was gone, as if she had vanished. The flowers we brought for Yom Kippur dinner were still fresh when we gathered to sit shiva.You will never regret showing up in life; for yourself and for others. Get in the car, make the trip, take the call, write the letter, change your plans, write the book, sign up for the art class…follow your heart. Be who you always dreamed you would be. Don’t allow scheduling and busyness to drive the train. The work and the tasks on your to-do list will be there when you get back. Trust me.
You are worthy of joy, goodness, love, inner peace, health, abundance in all forms.
Find ways to insert meaning back into every day. Reawaken your senses. See what’s unfolding around you. The magic lives within the most mundane of moments. Catch them. And when you are about to lay your head down on the pillow at night before you sleep, give thanks for them.Don’t be afraid to keep it simple. Don’t over-intellectualize or over-analyze your feelings. I think half the reason that we are in perpetual motion to get somewhere else is because we are over-complicating the whole thing. And as a friend of mine always reminds me, It ain’t that deep.I just read what I first thought was a totally corny book, Life’s Golden Ticket: A Story of Second Chances, by Brendon Burchard, in prep for a recent interview. If you don’t know Brendon, he’s a pioneer of online education — someone who has built a phenomenally successful business teaching others how to build thriving lives and successful businesses. And while his record speaks for itself, I wanted to know about the man behind the message — the ‘how and why’.Suffice it to say, I figured it out — Brendon catches fireflies. Everything he does is infused with meaning. This book is a dance of metaphor, a soul kiss — and a reminder to show up.
“You see you’re like most people. You’re the type of person to remember all the scary rides and forget all the pleasant ones. The simple ones. The beautiful ones. I think you’ve obsessed about the experiences in life that dropped you to the ground, and you’ve overlooked all those that slowly and gently lifted you higher. You’re returning to the wrong rides all your life.”
~Life’s Golden Ticket
It really doesn’t take much to shift the needle of our lives, no matter where you find yourself…believe me. But this is a tried and true, 100% guaranteed life-winning recipe.
Feel into life and life will feel better to you.
So, how about getting out there to catch some of your life’s fireflies?
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As always, I love hearing from you — and the BEST sharing happens here. Where are you allowing life’s magic to slip through your fingers unnoticed? And what’s calling to you — where are you being asked to show up for yourself?