Breakfast in the hotel turned out to be a buffet for $12.95. Anyone who knows me, knows I’d never eat $12 worth of food. But I had to make this work because I’m not paying $12 for a bowl of oatmeal. I stayed here for an hour and a half. I started with the oatmeal, made my way through scrambled eggs and bacon, and topped it off with a yogurt parfait. My mission was to eat enough to keep myself happy until dinner time. Mission accomplished. (It was a huge buffet, with great things, and they did cook your eggs to order, avoiding the luke warm scrambled egg tray.)
As I ate, I contemplated the quiet, flat feeling I felt waking up this morning. This just isn’t me on the verge of tackling something new. Usually I’m much more animated and jumping with excitement. In my time with God this morning, I asked him about this. He just looked at me with that look he always gives me and said, “Don’t you remember what you asked me to do yesterday?”
“No, God, I’m just trying to eat a lot of food and remember where the parking garage is.”
I opened my morning meditations on my kindle, and it was still on yesterday’s page. I had highlighted the following in Julia Cameron’s “The Artists Way Everyday”:
“Another words, it’s time for that 12-step adage, “Easy does it”, because the truth is, easy DOES do it, and forced, frantic, and frenetic does not.”
Ah..ha…yesterday I asked God to slow me down with this new business adventure and plan to publish my book. I asked him to make me listen more and talk less. (Those who know me personally know what huge undertaking that is for me – especially when I passionately believe in something.)
I now realize he just answered my prayer. When the friends I was with last night were talking about being here and feeding off of everyone else’s excitement, I wasn’t feeling it. I had done a lot of my own training online last week and this was basically a review of it all. I had enough excitement of my own, all alone at home during the week, because I found something I truly believed in and I didn’t need to ride the wave with others.
This is so uncharacteristic of me, that this morning it felt funny to be so calm. Until I opened that meditation and remembered what I asked of God yesterday. Thinking back to my experience with several other people last night, I did remain calm. I did listen more and talk way less. My friend wanted to get a picture of us with owner of the company. For some reason, that didn’t matter to me, but I went along with her because I didn’t want to ruin her excitement. (She’s been in this business awhile and does really well, so maybe I’m just not “there yet”.)
Anyway, now, the morning after, I realize two things happened. One, God simply answered my prayer from the day before, and two, the best way to approach a new, huge thing is with a clear head, moving slowly and learning step by step along the way. How many times have I raced ahead, carried by exuberance, and missed key concepts and skipped necessary steps, only to realize it and have to backtrack? Yesterday I decided “not this time” and prayed for quiet wisdom. Only trouble is, when I got it, I didn’t know what to do with it!
And so, as another day goes by, I’ll thank God for answering my prayer, ask him to show me where my car is, try on my new sense of “quiet wisdom” and…I have written. (And, oh, there’s a fitness room – might not be a bad idea before I search for that car,)
Photo: My friend Karen and I with Chris Chambliss, CEO of the company. Thank you, Karen, you’ve been a great support system in my new adventure. I hope I can do the same for other new consultants.
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