Friday, January 8, 2021

Uninvested




2021. A new year. A time when we tend to look back. A time when we also tend to look forward and set new goals in an attempt to fix what we don’t like. I’m not really into resolutions. These last few years, I tend to analyze my life regularly as I go. If I don’t like something, I make an effort to change it then and there, instead of waiting for year end. Living slower, I have more time for observation and self-examination. More time to catch myself resisting what is. More time to remind myself to go with the flow instead of fighting it. Too much planning seems to make me miss too many present moments. Being fully alive includes a certain spontaneity. Welcoming what is like I had chosen it. Trusting. Here. Now. As much as so many people are happy to see it end, 2020 was a good year for me personally. Despite Covid or maybe because of it? I was lucky in that we live in an area with relatively low case numbers and our family income was not affected. We’re pandemic privileged in that sense. And there’s also bikes. I’d have to go back to my childhood to remember a time when I enjoyed riding as much as I did this past year. It wasn’t about the numbers. It was simply about the deep feelings of appreciation and gratification that emanated from each and every pedal stroke. Or maybe I should call it pedal stoke? Instead of resolutions, I have but one intention. I long to be uninvested. Univested in your opinion of me. Univested in being right. Univested in proving my worth. Uninvested in trying to convince you to think like I do. Uninvested in every single thing outside of my own self. Uninvested in everything outside of my heart. Invested in being more uninvested. I have come to realize that the only thing that I have the power to change is my own self. Therefore, being invested in anything else is simply foolish. How invested are you in changing your own self in 2021?

1 comment:

Scott K. Johnson said...

Hi Mike!

Powerful post here, in many ways. I am glad that you and your family made it through 2020 unscathed. It sounds like you were even able to find some really nice nuggets of wisdom and goodness, which is a blessing!

I love the concept of being uninvested. There are so many trivial things that greedily eat up our energy but, in the end, arent' worth much at all. I would do well to be more mindful of where I can pull back and refocus. Thanks for the moving reminder!

Stay well!