Today I stumbled across Oprah's OWN Website and more importantly her Lifeclass section. I think I'll be frequenting this website more often, especially since I don't have her channel on my TV.
She has a page called Oprah's Life Class Tour where she posts a daily question? and if you're after something further to ponder a series of other questions.
I decided I'd ponder those questions and see where they got me. I guess this post is a little like thinking out loud. It's a bit random, at times forced me to think about where I wanted to go with the answers and whether I had the courage to be honest.
Here I go:
What guilt will you let go of today?
Today I felt guilty, my daughter had an open night at school and alas I was at work. She was in tears and I felt guilty. But as I write this I know two things:
1/ My daughter needs to learn disappointment. She also needs to accept that we can’t always get what we want.
2/ If I did not work during the evening I would most likely work during the day and no doubt my children would miss out on a hell of a lot more than they do now.
So I know that whilst this pulls at my heart strings, I can’t and won’t hang onto this.
What’s the best thing that came from a hard conversation?
Tough conversations, I’ve had a few of them lately. It’s about the rut. The how did we get here? How do we move forward?
Hubby and I are really evaluating our current situation. What are the right choices for our family? It’s a tough conversation to question what you’re doing and if it’s really enough. Or whether you should just sit back and plod along and be grateful for what you have?
We’re trying to find a balance. I hate that word BTW.
What Are You Grateful For?
Right now I’m grateful for friendships. We’ve lived in our place now for 10 years, we've made a few friends along the way but in the last couple of years we've really found our place.
Snap – It’s just a good fit. Why did it take so long? It doesn’t really matter now though, just grateful.
What’s the best choice you’ve made?
Best choice? Recently, I made a choice to finally make a conscious effort to avoid the big brand supermarkets and attempt to reduce my shopping bill. It’s a long time coming and it appears to be working. I’ll fill you in on that in more details soon.
What’s keeping you from being able to forgive who you need to?
I know there are people I do not forgive, but the question begs; Do I need to? I don’t hold onto anger, I don’t let things fester inside of me.
I am, with age, moving forward, accepting that some relationships just don’t work out and that is OK. I don’t necessarily forgive, but I forget and get on with my own life.
Is that OK? Is that the point of this question, that need to be happy and fulfilled in your own life and not holding onto anger that is in turn holding you back?
How can you begin giving more of your time to what you were really meant to do with your life?
Trust me when I say I have been pondering this for a while now. I keep trying to physically free up my time but really I’m learning that I need to free up my time mentally.
The other catch with this question is I’m yet to work out what it is I’m really meant to do with this life? If someone can tell me that I’ll be forever in their debt.
What is your deepest fear?
As a parent my deepest fear is losing a child. Following this it is just the thought of something terrible happening to them. I want for them to grow and live a happy and fruitful life, surrounded by love and security.
Outside of my desire for my children, I guess I fear that I may never work out what it is I am meant to do with this life of mine.
How would you fill in this sentence? The pain I can’t get past is_____.
The pain that I can’t get past is that feeling when a friend walks out of your life and you’re unsure why, that feeling of not being valued or important enough.
I try not to hang onto this and as I delve more into what my purpose is I’m learning to let go and appreciate what I do have, rather than what I don’t.
Are you on a journey to discover who you are and what your purpose is? or do you walk forward living life confidently, comfortable with where you are at and and what it is you do?
Cheers
Mandy.
This is awesome. What great questions, and I love how thoughtful your answers are. As a parent, I have to imagine all parents share the same greatest fear. My biggest fears are something happening to me, leaving Nick without his mum, or something happening to him, leaving me with literally no reason to get out of bed in the morning. It is hard to let those fears go, to push them out of my mind. But it's harder to live with them.
ReplyDeleteI find it's easier to forgive than to forget. I can forgive people for a lot, but I never forget what they've done, and that's what I need to learn to let go of. Thanks for sharing this, I'll be going home to check them out later myself!
Very true, the thought of someone else raising my children does send a shiver down my spine.
ReplyDeleteI always enjoyed Oprah because she often had shows that pushed you to look at yourself. I am glad I stumbled across this. I look forward to watching some of her video clips too from time to time.
So Oprah might ask these questions & then when we answer them...how has it really helped you? I am not being critical of You, my friend..but I am critical of those who may think their information is better than what we can come up with by ourselves.
ReplyDeleteM, I think these days we spend too much time thinking about the next thing, event, day, holiday..well I do...and forget that this one moment is what we have. Look back & that's a time gone. Don't project to the point it causes more angst. My view is that when you are having days or nights of doubts and soul searching then they too can be difficulties for you. Simple pleasures may be sitting quietly and feeling the breath go in & out. Looking up to the sky is a favorite of mine too. Balance is annoying as soon as its achieved..gone, because something kicks it out of whack. Life and what it is about for us individually is one of those unanswerable questions except you know in your heart what the answer is. Take care! denyse
I so get what your saying Denyse. I wasn't having a bad day or anything, I've just suddenly hit this thing in my life where I have this desire to look beyond the everyday. I don't know, maybe I'm searching for something more spiritual, but I'm also trying to acknowledge the great and simple that is happening right under my nose.
DeleteThis was such a thought provoking post. I think its great that you take the time to think about these things. Guilt is such an aweful, useless emotion and you make such great points in relation it.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to hearing more about the avoidance of the big brand supermarkets!