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Slowing Down, Reflecting and…

sunset calm water

Slowing Down, Reflecting and…Getting An Awful Lot of Work DONE!

Sunset at Eaglecrest, Qualicum Beach, BC

“We cannot see our reflection in running water. It is only in still water that we can see.”

– Taoist Proverb

This self-isolation business is good for business…mine anyway

To be perfectly honest, it’s about flippin’ time I plopped my bottom down in one place for a significant amount of time and got some long-overdue writing and other tasks accomplished.

This gazelle has been traveling too much. Yes, it’s been fun. Yes, I’m glad I traveled when I did because who knows when we’ll be able to again.

But quite frankly, the planet is likely breathing a sign of relief for this much-needed reprieve from all the air travel done by yahoos such as myself.

Fact is, our atmosphere is dangerously overloaded with carbon dioxide. We are rapidly reaching the point of no return. What will it take to get us (myself included) to change our ways and make the incredibly difficult shift away from fossil fuels as our main energy source?

Hmmm…

Damn this COVID19 situation: it’s forcing us to slow down and perhaps do a little uncomfortable reflecting on our personal lives and planetary matters.

But I know a wake-up call when I get one (this isn’t my first rodeo in that department). The time has come for me to slow down, hunker down and get some serious work done. And that, I am pleased to report, is exactly what I have been doing for the past few weeks…and will continue to do in the foreseeable future.

Interestingly, with the slower pace (no afternoon errands to run or evening activities to attend), I find myself taking more time to just sit quietly and listen to what my soul might be trying to tell me. This is turning out to be very good for business.

One the one hand, my productivity is vastly improved…I am achieving a great deal more work. But I think the quality of that work is also better.

By slowing down and not rushing through tasks at my usual break-neck speed, not only am I receiving more intuitive insights, I am also better able to apply those insights to the relevant project. In other words, I am able to take the time needed to complete challenging tasks and projects versus trying to bring about that completion in the time I want it to take.

Needless to say, I am taking lots of breaks 🙂 Here are a few more photos from my Qualicum Beach ‘hood:

Birds in flight, Eaglecrest Beach

 

Smiling daff in sunshine…spring is here!

 

Chili the neighbourhood watch cat who comes to visit me on occasion to check in 🙂

Today is also the 6th anniversary of my Mom’s passing

It was from my Mom that I got my love for travel. This one of my favourite photos of her:

Mary Pope, 2011

It was taken on our Alaskan cruise (my, how the world has changed). I remember the moment I snapped this photo. We had just been handed our tall fruity welcome drinks and were happily slurping away on deck, waiting for the rest of our family to find us.

I also remember the last day of our cruise. I was wheeling my Mom in her wheelchair down the ramp, leaving the ship. She was wearing her big-ass white sunglasses, bawling her eyes out.

“Mom,” I said. “What’s wrong? We’ve had a wonderful time. Are you sad to go home?”

“No,” she said. “I’m sad the cruise is over. I don’t want this party to end.”

None of us did. Unfortunately, all parties end…eventually.

As the COVID19 virus runs it course, it would appear our planetary party is being forced to slow down. Now is a perfect time for reflection.

One of the biggest things I am taking away from this time-out is gratitude.

In particular, I have a profound appreciation for all the front-line healthcare workers who are risking their own health, day in and day out. Same goes for all the other workers who do still have to be out in public places…from first responders to grocery-store cashiers, thank you.

I am very grateful to be able to work from home, safe and healthy (but a little too well-fed, I might add). I am thankful for my personal financial situation. The economic fallout of all this will be staggering. For many, it already is.

So there you have it…that’s a little bit of what I’ve been reflecting on during this COVID19 crisis. How about you?

Take care & stay well,

Much love from a grounded gazelle.

Intuitive Insights for Soul Inspired Living daily quote cards (updated edition now available) may be ordered through our Etsy store.

Related blog by Maryanne

Well, well, well…

Maryanne Pope is the author of A Widow’s Awakening, the playwright of Saviour and the screenwriter of God’s Country. Maryanne is CEO of Pink Gazelle Productions and Chair of the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund. If you would like to receive her weekly blog, please sign up here.

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10 thoughts on “Slowing Down, Reflecting and…”

  1. Maryanne,
    thank you.
    i’m sorry to say i am one of those folks who is more in a catatonic state than energized. I think it’s b/c i’ve ‘gotten through’ a lot in 64 years of life & survived- but this is too much like the apocalyptic novels I’ve loved over the years.
    but thank you for your writings. i’m so glad I’ve found you!
    Mary Beth

  2. Love this and love the pictures. Brings back beloved memories of fun times. It’s good for you to settle a little you have been running alot. It’s good for all of us to settle. Let’s hope we can all take this breather. If we a do it Covid-19 will pass with few casualties and hopefully we will all come out of it wiser. Knowing that we are all one community and if we work together we can solve so many issues!

  3. Love that picture of your mom. As inconvenient as this crisis might be, I think you have a point on a reprieve for the environment. What beautiful sites you have at home!

  4. Hi Jennifer…yes, I very much love and appreciate (and thoroughly enjoy) the beauty in my backyard. And yes…Mother Nature is probably breathing a small sigh of relief these days. So much sadness and strife in the world, though…it is heart-breaking.
    Take care & enjoy the new puppy!
    Maryanne

  5. Yes…this COVID19 experience has really made me realize how interconnected we are and how important community is. And yes, how we need to work TOGETHER to solve issues…very wise point, Lynne.
    MA

  6. Hi Mary Beth…wonderful to hear from you! I hope you are feeling a bit more energized these days. There IS an awful lot going in the world today and the relentless bad news can really wear us down, if we aren’t careful to take breathers now and then. Take care and thanks so much for reading!
    Maryanne

  7. 2 batches of home made cookies – oatmeal raisin, and chocolate chip. Good thing my friend went traveling and left me with many baking supplies I am finally using. Gardening done. Veg planted in case I can never go to the grocery store again. Much writing being done as well. I’m in a good place (literally and figuratively). Avoid seniors hours at the grocery – since I live in a town where I am in the non senior minority.
    All is well here.

  8. Yay! You sound fabulous, gazelle…so happy to hear you are making good use of this time – writing, baking & gardening!!
    MA

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