Welcome dear friends!
We have arrived at the last Monday of July… the day we all share our updates with how our word showed up for us, how we focused on our word (or not… it is very okay if you did not think about your word!) I had some unexpected surprises this month and I kept Yutori in my focus as you will read. I am eager to read about how you did this month as well and you will find the link to share your update at the bottom of this post!
Let July be July. Let August be August. And let yourself just be even in the uncertainty. You don’t have to fix everything. You don’t have to solve everything. And you can still find peace and grow in the wild of changing things. — Morgan Harper Nichols
It was a happy accident that I stumbled across this Morgan Harper Nichols quote… and just what I needed for my focus for this month.
And so, I reminded myself daily to… let July be July. Hot and muggy…the epitome of summer. July absolutely reminded me daily that it was Full On Summer!
And, like July, my days were “hot and muggy” with uncertainty… Full On Uncertainty! I spent lots of time being still with myself, my worries, and my concerns and I reminded myself frequently… I am not the fixer or the solver! I can just be in the uncertainty. If only that was as easy to do as it is to say.
I have arrived at the portion of my life where I am daily “living the questions”… and I would really like to get to the point of living into the answer… living the questions is not easy especially when the desire for the answer… i.e. fixing/solving… is overwhelming.
I let myself sit in the uncertainty. I meditated on the uncertainty. I was still with the uncertainty. I tried to get comfortable with the uncertainty. And, like letting July be July, I just let the uncertainty be uncertain. I did find some answers… but I also learned that answers are not always solutions… but rather a door to more uncertainty.
I wish I could tell you that I have magically arrived at peace as July winds down… I have not. But I have begun to make peace with the uncertainty. I am not quite at the point of “loving the unsolved,” as Rilke suggests. But I am not fighting with it today. I am letting the uncertainty be uncertain… and holding peace in the same space. Not perfectly… it is a work in progress, but I had some brief moments of success.
Do I still have worries and concerns? Yes, I do! But I am realizing that I can have worries, concerns and they don’t have to overwhelm me… I can also hold peace at the same time. I am learning that sitting with worries is a bit like arriving early for an appointment… it is amazing when you are still and just take in what is happening…inside and out… you find more than you expected.
Perfection? Nope… but perhaps something even better, the discovery that there can be uncertainty and peace at the same time. Is it a work in progress? Absolutely… but I am not shying away from the work.
If you wrote a post to share, please leave your link below. I hope your July was magnificent!
Sounds to me like you are dealing with your uncertainty very well Kat. Bravo to you! Being still can be so strengthening. Sending you peace as you continue your journey. And, I sure hope this heat and humidity ease up soon!
I agree with Vera — you’re doing a great job of managing the uncertainty and accepting that it’s part of your life! I understand very well the frustration, as I have always been someone who dislikes ambiguity and unanswered questions. But I’ve realized as I’ve gotten older that there isn’t always an answer and sometimes we just have to be okay with that. It’s not easy, but things that are worthwhile rarely are! Here’s hoping that as we move into August, we have less heat and humidity and less uncertainty in general.
Just being in the uncertainty is very tough for all of us, and I think it may be the work of a lifetime. I so often wish and think that I need to resolve things, but so much is truly beyond our control.You’re doing a great job of living with uncertainty and maybe a few answers; keep going and may peace be with you.
“I also learned that answers are not always solutions…” I reread that numerous times, Kat. While it *may* seem obvious, I’ve never thought of it that wise way. (That, alone, is fodder for a year!) This seems like it could be a significant takeaway from this word, this work of July.
Have you seen the book Comfortable with Uncertainty, by Pema
Chodron? It may or may not resonate; I found it indispensable in a particularly challenging year, so I tend to recommend it around waiting/questions…
Thanks for holding this collective space. May August bring a break in humidity! (Is that wholly unrealistic?)
I am so in the same mindset over uncertainty, it’s awful. In the end all you can do is live in the moment as much as possible. My mantra was ” I am warm, dry and safe”.. the rest could wait. My thoughts and love are with you. It too will pass!
Uncertainty is the devil’s work for me. I manage dealing with a chronic illness with therapy, medication and lots and lots of praying. Every day is a day where I have to remind myself what I am focusing on when I am living my values.
I think of the greatest lessons in life is learning that many emotions can exist at the same time. Finding a way to accept those emotions is a challenge but it brings use ever closer to peace and contentment.
Very inspiring – hadn’t really thought too hard about how much I identify as the solver. Or perhaps had been avoiding thinking about it?!
Kat — it sounds like you’re in really great place right now (or . . . getting there). I also struggle with ambiguity . . . also with fixing and solving . . . so your post today is inspiring. I like your ending conclusion : peace AND uncertainty. YES! XO
I love the idea that uncertainty and peace can exist together in the same space. It seems as if you are very thoughtful about the uncertainties and the wish for solutions and answers. What an inspiration for me who spends a great deal of time worrying. I’m learning to trust the process and the moment but it is a work in progress.