choice

I am in a playing with the concept of choice today. I was reviewing parts of Anatomy of the Spirit: The Seven Stages of Power and Healing for a shamanic session I am facilitating and I found a whole section on choice which sparked this inner dialogue.

In my view of the world I tend to believe that there is no wrong choice. There are easy ways to go and there are harder ways. Right or Wrong seems way too black and white for me and I tend to view the world and the events in more of a spectrum with a huge gray scale and not much happening in the realm of Good (white) or Bad (black). But that's me, I like gradients and I like to think that even my worst choices are tools for learning "what not to do." I hope that they teach others as well (that is if I choose to share my follies).

What got me pondering choice today are concepts Caroline Myss presents, which are 1) choices made in fear are not supported by the divine 2) choice is the process of creation 3) ultimately we cannot be in control.

My response to point 1: her basic statement following this idea was that any choice made in fear is a wrong choice and cannot be supported by God. Fear negates all forms of manifestation and creativity according to the argument presented in the book. What I can't get behind in this idea is that A LOT of our decisions are made in times of fear and panic. In fact most of us are consistently living in a state of near panic at all times due to the stresses of daily living in our society (how do I make ends meet, how do I pay taxes, is my relationship going to fail, will I be fired, etc) So what I don't get is that if we are living in a state of fear due to the circumstances of our lives, does this mean that we are continuously making bad choices? Because yuck. I can't subscribe to that. It takes away our power. I realize on one hand it is trying to give us power and make us see that Right choice comes from a calm, centered place but how can we get to that calm centered place in the middle of the high stress business meeting, or the dark street corner? Rash quickly made decisions should be thought about and reviewed, I can own that. But I can't stall on that street corner or in that meeting because if I do someone else is going to make a decision for me and that decision may very well affect my well-being. This is why having a gray scale is a good thing. I can justify and place all of my actions somewhere on that scale and make none of it Right or Wrong. And I can find the trust somewhere in my being that the higher powers looking out for me will put energy behind any decision I am fully committed too.

I really like the idea that choice is creation. I am creating my reality with every small decision I make. I like that. And I hate that. Because I understand that when I choose not to exercise my body or feed it healthy things that I am creating and environment for my body to not function at it's highest potential. In the long run I hope this belief can turn into a lifestyle where I make better decisions (brighter on the gray scale) which in turn create more opportunities that I like to participate in and can put energy and resources behind. And to play again with point one, if choice is creation isn't any choice made under any circumstance blessed by the divine? I'd like to think so.

And the last point: that we are ultimately not in control cracks me up. It like being offered a choice between a and b, picking one and then having it withheld (nope sorry, I just wanted to see which one you'd pick). If this is True why bother to make a decision at all? If everything is already planned out and we are not in control, then what is the point of all this struggle? What I believe the author was trying to get across is that we are all subjected to the factors of chaos and fate. Chaos comes from the influence of others actions upon your decisions and also from outside influences you cannot control. Chaos makes life more interesting and highly unusual. Fate to me is events that are unforeseen and out of our control, things like accidents, illness, miracles. Fate makes sure you get to the next level of your evolution whether by force or by happenstance. These forces work together to make your life full. What I am hoping the author was trying to say that it really doesn't matter what you choose you will get to exactly where you are supposed to be one way or another.

This brings me around to the whole point of this post... I am a poor decision maker. Especially when asked questions if I am hungry or tired or feeling overwhelmed. I have learn to view this as a fault of mine. I get confused and I don't want to commit to anything, not even what I want to eat. So I let others decide and either it is ok or more often it pisses me (or the other person) off, because I wanted anything BUT that. I am a difficult person. However due to an activity I participated in this weekend about taking our fault and turning it into a superpower I am finding amazing things about choice and how many choice I am constantly and actually making in life here on planet earth. So if I am to turn this around I have to say that....

I am Opportunity woman. Able to defy fate with patience, annoys serious adults but is friend to all children, animals and artists, has a storeroom of possible doors to walk through, can change temperament, clothes or ideas in a flash, has the potential to manifest anything, sees all potential outcomes and commits to nothing but the possibility of everything.

That's a pretty good superhero skill.

Walking

My partner and I went hiking yesterday in the Cascades off I-90. It was beautiful, the trees are brilliant yellows, reds and green. It was overcast but that just makes the colors stand out more.

While walking I realized how much gets processed and how amazing it is to just be. There were quite a lot of people around, didn't see them, just heard them and it made me realize how utterly noisy we are as creatures. We have lost our sense of balance in nature and it seems to compensate we create noise. I almost always hike in silence. I stop often and point out small flowers, or places where there are 6 colors of moss and lichens, or a red leaf on a rock by the creek, but I point and smile, I don't yell.

There was this quote I once read and have lost track of but essential it said, "there is no problem in my life I cannot walk away from." I love this for it's metaphysical and physical qualities. I have found in my own life this is true, any depression I have found myself in is healed by the simple act of walking, even just around the block. It's the getting up and starting that's the hard part.

I was reading the next book in this series Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity. The author talks about adding a weekly walk to your routine. (She does morning pages and artist dates, in case you don't know here work.) She talks about the walk being a place where creative solution happens. For me walking is much like receiving a reflexology treatment, with the added benefit of being in nature. In reality it is a reflexology treatment. If you are wearing the correct shoes, your feet are being moved through all ranges of motion and your body is pumping blood and your feet are being worked by the earth, the tree roots, and the rocks you wander over. I recently read and article on hiking barefoot. I'm not sure I would recommend this activity to most of my clients, but someday I think I will have to try it myself, just for the experience and the extra reflexology you would receive.

Some quick thoughts on hiking shoes. Most are a gimmick and an unnecessary expense. Having said that yes I own a pair, but I also hike a lot and do some really tricky terrains and need some extra ankle support on talus slopes. If you are doing well maintained trails, without huge shifts in terrain your normal tennis shoes or my favorite, Blundstones (Australian for boot), are perfect. If you want the hiking boots, here are my guidelines for a good pair. There must be room in the toe box so you can spread your toes and feel more grounded when walking on rocks, tree trunks, and in slippery or mucky ground. There can't be and excessive mount of room or on steep slopes downhill for an extended period of time you will jam your toes (head reflex) repeatedly and also potentially get blisters on your heel (pelvic/ low back reflex) You must be able to tie the shoe around your foot without pinching, but it must tie snugly so your foot doesn't slip forwards or back causing callousing and blisters. It must be flexible in the arch, not the toe, the arch YES I am serious, you should get some movement in the shoe. The only exception to this rule is if these are boot that you will attach crampon (ice climbing metal spiky things). It is also really nice to have water resistant shoes. In recent testing conducted by me at the local REI there were 10 plus types of hiking shoe/ boot and only one brand fit these criteria. My partner and I have been long time fans of these shoes for outdoor use and if they ever go out of business we will cry. My favorite hiking shoes are made by Vasque but Merrill does ok as well.

"walking should be and effortless exercise" states Wickler, a man whose research we quote often in our foot pain classes at Seattle Reflexology. A podiatrist was once asked what the best exercise for the feet is and he stated there is no comparison to walking. Walk as much as you can, for as long as you can." There will be much more on walking and shoes in the days to come.

Get out, take a walk, enjoy nature and solve all your problems with simple exercise.

Oh and here is the third book in the artist way series that I was referring too Walking in this World