Life Questions to Remind You of the Good Life

Quote of the day:  

How well did you love?  How fully did you live?  How deeply did you let go?

“You don’t have to be Buddhist to appreciate the wisdom of those three questions, to which I added another: Did you make a difference?” —  Patty Digh

The changing of the seasons reminds me of how quickly time passes and how short life is. It reminds me to ask these three life questions: How well did you love? How fully did you live? How deeply did you let go?

These questions are a challenge, because the focus of so much of our culture is not about loving well, living fully, or letting go. Instead, of growing in consciousness and presence, many of us numb ourselves by striving for success, status, and material things. Sometimes events occur which wake us up for a little while. But too often, we fall back to sleep all too easily. Or we find it just too difficult to swim against the strong current of our culture.

I have spent the past year and a half focusing on listening to my heart, following my heart, loving more fully, being more present, and letting go of fears.  At times I have clarity and crystal-clear focus on my goal to live and love fully and whole-heartedly. At other times, the fear of not having or being enough sneaks in and before I know it I’m off working on things that bring me no joy or thinking that it would be a lot easier to just go out and get a job as a software engineer and not working on photography.

One of the things that derails me most often is a lack of trust. I have a friend who got clear intuitive guidance that she needed to leave her 9 to 5 job and work on a project that has great meaning for her. She has a son in school and no big savings cushion to rely on AND she listened to her guidance and left her job. It’s been almost two years now. I marvel at her courage and trust that she will be taken care of.

She told me that once last year, she was literally down to no money left in the bank account, very little food in the pantry, and the rent due soon. Instead of going back into the 9 to 5 world, she sat down and meditated and prayed. The very next day, she found the perfect part-time nanny job that allowed her to pay the rent, put food on the table, and keep working towards her purpose.

Whew! I don’t have that kind of courage. But I would like to. Each day I strive to be awake and alive and fully present, living whole-heartedly with trust and courage.

How about you? What questions will help you wake up and love fully, live freely, and let go of fear?

Golden light and water drops on flower. Photo enhanced with R.H. West texture – Vanilla.

Soft pink roses – Also textured with R.H. West Vanilla texture