Pathwalking 235
This is not what I expected.
How often in your life have you either thought or said these words? For me, it has been far more frequently than I might have wanted.
Pathwalking is about finding, choosing and then walking a path in life. You dictate that path, you make the choices along it.
Of course no path is perfectly straight. They all come with twists and turns, obstacles to be overcome, avoided or directly dealt with. The best way to walk your chosen path is to do so in the now, keeping lessons learned from the past with an eye to the future, but right here and now, in this moment, on this given path.
And then the unexpected. More than just a twist or turn in the path, not an obstacle. Something you were not planning for. It is that unexpected something that can have a profound effect on your path, and might even change it.
Pathwalking involves being open to new ideas. It is about accepting, and really embracing change. I choose to walk a given path because I want to control my own destiny, and live this life as will make me the happiest.
Still, the unexpected can be daunting. It can be something challenging to reconcile that you just haven’t quite got the notion for how to handle it.
What sort of unexpected thing is this of which I write? Something out-of-the-blue that could change your path. A friend from the past who comes back into your life just when you need such. That lover you were not looking for. A job offer you can’t refuse. A financial windfall. A relocation to somewhere unfamiliar. A promotion.
All of these unexpected things are potentially positive. This is what makes these different from your standard pathway twists and turns, obstacles and redirections. Also, they frequently come upon you fairly suddenly. A phone call, an e mail, a text, nothing you foresaw and yet here it is.
Like all aspects of Pathwalking, now you have been presented with a choice. Leave the path you were merrily trekking upon and go with this unexpected happening…or decline it, ignore it and keep focused on the end goal of the path you’ve chosen.
When you are living in the now as you travel your path, you can better handle the twists and obstacles, and you can equally better handle this kind of unexpected thing. You are adaptable. You can make changes.
Often the unexpected is a good omen. I’ve not written a lot about this concept, because Pathwalking is about your own choices, not simply letting things happen as you go along. However, as you journey along your given path, chances are you’ve encountered signs that have shown you that this is indeed the right way to be going. This is why you have chosen the paths you choose.
Still, along the way we often receive signs from the Universe of encouragement. Omens. I know this can be a pretty cryptic concept, but it is still something important to be considered.
If, as you are travelling your chosen path, you are full of doubt, and you are uncertain about the choice, you may find that the thing that will keep you on that chosen path, versus choosing a different path, is some kind of omen. You see a small payoff. You receive encouragement from without that increases confidence and helps you with choices upon the path. Something that defies explanation might occur to keep you down this path.
The unexpected of the nature I am writing of is a sign. It may be unexpected, but it is not unwanted. It is a good omen, because while it may change the path, it is still something that will bring you happiness. Because when all is said and done, that’s the primary reason to choose and walk a given path. The end result we all want is joy. It is happiness.
Oh, come on. What about the job? The money? The relationship? The goal of the path is the thing wanted. That’s as may be, but I would ask you to consider why. Why do you want the job, the money, the relationship, or whatever your end goal of the path you are walking is? Because it is something the inevitably will make you happy.
That is why the positive but unexpected happening is a good thing. Maybe it’s not how you expected this path you are walking to go, but if it brings you more happiness, makes you feel good and improves your life, didn’t you manifest it for yourself by choosing to walk a path in the first place?
My aim may be for goal ‘x’, but I probably cannot see how it will come about. So what if the unexpected is better than what I was aiming for in the first place? Because I was making the effort, isn’t it probable I drew this to myself, even if unexpectedly?
This is not what I expected…but I am excited to see where it’s going to take me now.
What unexpected things have you experienced?
GOAL LOG – Week 25:
Diet: My extreme diet continues. I am still eating well, avoiding bread and pasta and candy and other sugars, except for on 1 day last week. I feel healthier overall, and my clothes are definitely fitting better.
Exercise: Fencing happened three days last week, and I spent several hours in the ocean swimming with my friends’ kids. I did a decent amount of walking, shot archery, but I didn’t get to the gym.
Writing: Three days of at least some writing and editing happened. I need to keep working to make this a more daily practice.
Meditation: Four days of meditation, at least 5 minutes each day.
Gratitude: I wrote out 5 things to be grateful for every day last week, save one.
This is the two-hundred thirty-fifth entry in my series. These weekly posts are ideas and my personal experiences in walking along the path of life. I share this journey as part of my desire to make a difference in this world along the way.
Thank you for joining me. Feel free to re-blog and share.
The first year of Pathwalking, including some expanded ideas, is available here.
If you enjoy Pathwalking, you may also want to read my Five Easy Steps to Change the World for the Better.
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