Birthday Blog

Sorry I haven't be blogging very much. I usually blog when I something on my mind. Perhaps I've been much more focused lately. The flying thing has been uneventful (as it should be.) Perhaps it has been feng shui-ing my life and getting the taxes out of the way. The feng shui thing is going well. I've decluttered my condo-although I'm still working on the yarn/knitting organization. I'm working on feng shui-ing my colon ( but that's a whole other blog topic). And, I've been knitting up a storm without starting any new projects. Yay!

So, what's the deal?

Well, the deal is that I'm pretty happy. I'm not feeling weighed down and stressed out. A few weeks ago I found a poem that has helped me find peace, order and meaning and I'd like to share it with you.

DESIDERATA
-- written by Max Ehrmann in the 1920s --

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Today is my birthday and I'm not usually one to talk about my birthday. In fact, I usually keep it on the very down low. This year is different. I'm in a good place in my life and I feel like I deserve my special day.

In the practice of Feng Shui, your home is a metaphor for your life. "Life" is organized into 9 areas or Guas which create the Bagua. The basic idea of the practice of Feng Shui is to allow Life Energy or Chi to come in through doors and windows and move freely through each area thereby enhancing those aspects of your life. The position of the Bagua areas in the bagua grid correspond to the position of the areas in your home or apartment.

Each area of the Bagua represents a different aspect of your life; Career, Self Cultivation and Knowledge, Happy Family, Prosperity, Fame and Reputation, Love and Relationship, Children and Creativity, Helpful People and Travel and Health.Each area has colors associated with it and several have elements associated with them. The colors and elements are used as enhancements to Chi or as cures for anything blocking the movement of Chi.

Since discovering Feng Shui, I've self diagnosed myself as being slightly Obsessive Compulsive with Attention Deficit Disorder. So, does that also make me a Hypochondriac?

Phase One of my new Feng Shui life is DECLUTTERING. For the last two weeks or since my last blog, I've been obsessed with decluttering my life and I must say that I'm very pleased with the progress. My fear is that like so many other projects in my life, I'll get 90% completion and never total free myself of mental, emotional and spiritual clutter.

The original plan was to find feng shui in the bedroom for improved sleep. Following the feng shui guidelines, I removed all non-bedroom related stuff out of the bedroom, decluttered, rearranged furniture, cleaned out closets, bought new sheets and bedspreads, etc. As strange as it may sound, the feng shui guidelines made decision making much easier. Color choices became more obvious, placement of items became more obvious-the guidelines just seem to make sense.

With my new found feng shui expertise, I went to Knitwits and started my Feng Shui magic at the shop. Like a whirling dervish, I decluttered, stacked, tossed, rearranged and drove everyone in the shop crazy. I must get a possessed look about me because everyone just stays clear. Jill described the experience as "Scaaaaaarrrrrry!" That's "scary" with 6 a-s and 6 r-s.

As scaaaaaarrrrrry as it may have been, we can now walk through the office without straddling or moving any obstacles and we now have visible desktops. Yay!

After my bedroom and Knitwits, I did my Feng shui magic in my kitchen, living room, dining room and bathrooms. All the "bad" Feng Shui stuff (aka "clutter") was tossed out, given away or moved to the spare bedroom.

According to the Feng Shui guidelines, my spare bedroom is the place of Skill and Knowledge in the my bagua. So, it seems fitting that all of my knitting related stuff (2 bookcases full of knitting books and magazines, 6 very large moving cartons of stash, 2 Tupperware tubs of needles and notions, my Circular Solutions wall-hanging circular needle organizer, baskets, baskets and more baskets filled with zip locked UFOs and more) were relocated to the spare bedroom. The problem is....now I can bearly open or close the door. The room is filled from floor to ceiling with my "little knitting hobby".

For now, I'll keep the spare bedroom door closed.

I'm hoping that my Feng Shui will be so impressed with my progress that I'll get a little grace period in the Skill and Knowledge department. On my next free day, I'm going to lock myself in my Skill and Knowledge gua and make order out of chaos.