I found myself constantly indirectly writing about love, how to love other people and let them love you back.
I tend to copy and paste the things that resonate with me on a deep level. Not much to add other than say thank you for sharing your writings. The weekly french songs. I always get excited when you do. I follow your words whenever I can.
This was timely, thank you. I'm thinking about the fact that I moved cross-country about a year and a half ago to take a job. It was a life-changing move, and I had high hopes for the job--especially as I was fleeing a major burnout situation. Fast forward to now, and while there are elements of the job I still love, there are clearly parts that are very much not working like I'd hoped. And they're not small; in fact, I've started to feel that old familiar soul-sucking sensation again.
I'm panicking thinking about having to start over again when I thought this would be a "sure thing" for years to come. And also panicking at the fact that I know I can't start over--not anytime soon--and don't have any ideas for what I could possibly do even if I did. So I'm trying to carry myself gently as you suggest as I navigate a path forward that involves playing the long game without getting sucked too deep into the mire of disappointment and cynicism. Plus, you know, the eternal anxiety around money.
This is so lovely. I think, right now carrying myself lightly = being gentle with myself and not attaching myself to a place or idea too much. I'm not very good at it, but I'm learning.
I really loved reading this! It put words into what I feel when I talk about low maintenance. It’s really more about carrying myself lightly than “low maintenance”.
Being able to make different choices in different situations and not being too rigid and stuck in one way.
when i read "living lightly" the first thing i thought of was milan kundera's novel, 'the unbearable lightness of being'. kundera describes "lightness" as a recognition of the transience of life, and the beauty of it.
i think you've touched on a similar note: to live lightly is to recognize that change is inevitable. nothing lasts forever, but we can also appreciate the beauty of impermanence.
a little late to the party, but lovely piece as always.
Carrying myself lightly often also means writing. If I can write it, I can realize it. What feeds me I think is being cared for and appreciated. Adapting also poses a problem for me and seeing you write about it made me accept myself more with my seeming ‘rigidity’. Also I also adore Patti’s ‘Just kids’. Read it for the first time in 2019.
This was supremely beautiful. Thank you for sharing. The act and practice of writing has brought out in myself this observing quality, as you say “what patterns recur.” Watching myself with (sometimes) loving curiosity.
Wow, this is beautiful. I've been trying to put into words how everything happened all at once when I made a big decision in my life. You captured the granular details beautifully and I'm finally learning to take it all lightly.
I love this point “to keep yourself close to what fuels the aliveness, what feels purposeful, and maybe even more simply: what you find interesting.”
I have been through a lot of transitions this year, and I had a change of perspective on many things. I realized the importance of staying close to what gave me a sense of purpose in order to build a solid structure for my life through all this change.
Carrying myself lightly sometimes feel like succumbing to instant rewards. I’ve been writing for almost 20 years now and I keep revisiting some of the most hurtful places I’ve been, just to spaghetti myself into the singularity of “never again”.
Yet, there are moments, stages, where carrying myself lightly is more related to my role in a group dynamics. Then, when in loneliness, I get to see how I sauced and meatballed it up, smile and carry on.
I recently heard or read somewhere that life is like a video game, where your consciousness is the player and your “I” is your character in the game. Your “I” may be unhappy or happy due to circumstances, but your consciousness can be content, because it's just playing a game. Maybe I butchered it, but I feel it relates a lot to this concept of living lightly while being very much involved in life.
I found myself constantly indirectly writing about love, how to love other people and let them love you back.
I tend to copy and paste the things that resonate with me on a deep level. Not much to add other than say thank you for sharing your writings. The weekly french songs. I always get excited when you do. I follow your words whenever I can.
This was timely, thank you. I'm thinking about the fact that I moved cross-country about a year and a half ago to take a job. It was a life-changing move, and I had high hopes for the job--especially as I was fleeing a major burnout situation. Fast forward to now, and while there are elements of the job I still love, there are clearly parts that are very much not working like I'd hoped. And they're not small; in fact, I've started to feel that old familiar soul-sucking sensation again.
I'm panicking thinking about having to start over again when I thought this would be a "sure thing" for years to come. And also panicking at the fact that I know I can't start over--not anytime soon--and don't have any ideas for what I could possibly do even if I did. So I'm trying to carry myself gently as you suggest as I navigate a path forward that involves playing the long game without getting sucked too deep into the mire of disappointment and cynicism. Plus, you know, the eternal anxiety around money.
This is so lovely. I think, right now carrying myself lightly = being gentle with myself and not attaching myself to a place or idea too much. I'm not very good at it, but I'm learning.
I really loved reading this! It put words into what I feel when I talk about low maintenance. It’s really more about carrying myself lightly than “low maintenance”.
Being able to make different choices in different situations and not being too rigid and stuck in one way.
when i read "living lightly" the first thing i thought of was milan kundera's novel, 'the unbearable lightness of being'. kundera describes "lightness" as a recognition of the transience of life, and the beauty of it.
i think you've touched on a similar note: to live lightly is to recognize that change is inevitable. nothing lasts forever, but we can also appreciate the beauty of impermanence.
a little late to the party, but lovely piece as always.
Carrying myself lightly often also means writing. If I can write it, I can realize it. What feeds me I think is being cared for and appreciated. Adapting also poses a problem for me and seeing you write about it made me accept myself more with my seeming ‘rigidity’. Also I also adore Patti’s ‘Just kids’. Read it for the first time in 2019.
This was supremely beautiful. Thank you for sharing. The act and practice of writing has brought out in myself this observing quality, as you say “what patterns recur.” Watching myself with (sometimes) loving curiosity.
congrats on your big decisions, Nicole! ✨
Wow, this is beautiful. I've been trying to put into words how everything happened all at once when I made a big decision in my life. You captured the granular details beautifully and I'm finally learning to take it all lightly.
To carry myself lightly makes me think of how speaking softly can be loud or how saying less actually says more.
I love this point “to keep yourself close to what fuels the aliveness, what feels purposeful, and maybe even more simply: what you find interesting.”
I have been through a lot of transitions this year, and I had a change of perspective on many things. I realized the importance of staying close to what gave me a sense of purpose in order to build a solid structure for my life through all this change.
Carrying myself lightly sometimes feel like succumbing to instant rewards. I’ve been writing for almost 20 years now and I keep revisiting some of the most hurtful places I’ve been, just to spaghetti myself into the singularity of “never again”.
Yet, there are moments, stages, where carrying myself lightly is more related to my role in a group dynamics. Then, when in loneliness, I get to see how I sauced and meatballed it up, smile and carry on.
I recently heard or read somewhere that life is like a video game, where your consciousness is the player and your “I” is your character in the game. Your “I” may be unhappy or happy due to circumstances, but your consciousness can be content, because it's just playing a game. Maybe I butchered it, but I feel it relates a lot to this concept of living lightly while being very much involved in life.