The Art of Not Working So Hard for Life's Treasures.

I have a tendency to over do things. I overwork, overthink, over speak, overdo. I tend to trudge through the brush and bramble and forge my own path instead of taking the one that is sometimes obviously laid out before me, or even taking the hint of a trail.  This leads sometimes to wonderful adventures, but often just making things harder than they really need to be. 

Mom and I went huckleberry picking this morning. We have a favorite spot we go, it's served us well, year after year, but as is so often in life, sometimes things change. 

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Sometimes something that has worked for us, repetitive behaviors, relationships, work, places of joy, etc.... no longer are the best thing for us. Stubborn creatures that we are, most still cling to the idea that surely if we just work a little harder, search a little more, we will find the treasure we are looking for. It was here before! surely it's still here! if I just keep trying! 
Mom and I clambered through the bracken searching for the elusive berries, hoping to find what had been so plentiful in times past. We spent way too long in a place that was no longer where we needed to be. We finally moved on to someplace similar, and while slightly improved, we still struggled. We almost gave up entirely. As we were leaving we saw a spot that was completely different and initially I thought and said, surely there's nothing there, it's too open, too easy. But we stopped and low and behold the treasured huckleberries were there, in abundance. Sometimes we doubt the most obvious path because it seems too easy.  The lesson I'm finding, is that it is ok not to struggle. It is ok to accept the treasures in life that are granted that are easy. It is ok (in fact wonderful) to have relationships that are peaceful and lack drama. It is ok (brilliant really) to bask in the beauty that surrounds you and be grateful, and not just focus on everything that's going wrong.  Sometimes the easy path is the best path, and I need to take it more. 

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Ive spend two lovely days in nature with friends, and family, and it soothes my soul. Nature teaches you that just because something has been destroyed doesn't mean that beautiful things can't grow from that destruction. 

We try so hard to control everything. We analyze, plan, and work so hard to keep things going the way we think they should.  One of my best friends told me a story yesterday of how she bent her paddle floating in an attempt to go someplace the river din't want to take her. How much easier would it be if we just go where the river of life takes us? 
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Things grow in the wild. Without planning, or control. I'm not saying it's not important to dream, to plan for the future, to organize your life in such a way that the dreams you dream have a chance. I'm just coming to realize that perhaps I don't have to work so hard to make it so. Sometimes the obvious path, or the river of life takes you where you need to be.

More and more I think the less control I try to take, the better things work out for me. Instead of being a tame structured garden all planned out, my life is like the forest here in Montana. Things grow in surprising places, it's beautiful, it can be hard at times, and glorious, and simple at others. 

​Less fighting the river. More going with the flow. More wild blooming. 

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