NaBloPoMo: Make...a Mistake? Who Me?! ;)

Images from clip art

I couldn't resist the title! Hope you don't mind, though I was actually making fun of myself. You can read it as if you are the 'me' if you wish to! ;)

Today's NaBloPoMo prompt is as follows: "What was the last mistake you made? How did you try to fix it?"

I can't recall the last mistake I did so will answer generally.

I have, as we all have, made mistakes. In my case at least, many! Despite that, for some reason I still have to rack my brain as to what kind of recent mistake I made, yet alone any that I can write about!

Sometimes a mistake can be in the form of speaking impulsively, speaking one's mind, speaking one's truth, and at times speaking 'the' truth. There is a difference! At times speaking up is inappropriate and at other times, people can't handle it.

I would say my biggest mistakes other than that are when I do not trust and follow my intuition. I have come to learn that it is ALWAYS right! Yes, you read that right and it can be NO other way!

After all intuition comes from Spirit. I am not speaking about hallucinogenic voices or the like after all!

Though I would rather speak about what I did right, I will cite you at least one example, a big one, from my life.

In past, I have dated mostly the "wrong men". "How can you say that?" you may wonder. Hindsight is one of the best teachers in terms of lessons learned the hard way and unfortunately I did not necessarily learn from others' mistakes.

I primarily attracted men who were emotionally unavailable, i.e., an alcoholic, a pathological liar, a possessive man - dangerous! - a philanderer, and one with an emotional connection to an ex-girlfriend and another woman who liked him.

Truly I am embarrassed to admit all that; however, if it serves to help at least one person in this, then I am glad to have done so. Let me explain why -

Life is a mirror and everything we see and witness is a projection (think movie screen) of ourselves, namely our minds. You may have a challenging time believing this if you may be faith-based; however, I am telling you 'the' truth and there is a difference, i.e., what is indeed true!

Known as the 'law of attraction' it is basically the principle of like attracting like. This includes like-minded people, whether men and/or women, etc. And yes, to some degree opposites attract, though I am speaking here on an energetic level in terms of vibes.

Read my worst-case scenarios.

If I had trusted my intuition, my gut instinct, I would have never gone out with either the alcoholic or the possessive man.

However, even in worst-case scenarios, there are always lessons, albeit harsh, to be learned. And sometimes you have to - okay, I have to - learn the hard way in order to get it. I'm learning though...I think! ;)

What kind of mistakes do you tend to make? Can you 'correct' them and/or do you learn from them?

Intro to Summer Camp

Photo courtesy of North Shore News

Well I did it!  I really did it!  I really did it now!

No, I’m not speaking about a ‘bad’ incident or mishap.  Rather, I’m referring to the launch of my intro to the summer camp of a community co-creative children’s choir on Saturday, May 5^th at John Braithwaite Community Centre.

Though only a few kids showed up, at least they showed up, that is, that the parents brought them.  And one parent, plus an adult friend showed up too for support by participating in the various exercises I ran.

And although I was supported and I was exuberant, it wasn’t 100% successful.  How could it be?  If it was, would I grow and learn?  No!  Thus, it wasn’t a complete failure either.

It seemed that I made some so-called mistakes mainly through things that I didn’t say, things that I could have said, things that I should have said.  Namely what I’m referring to is speaking about goals of the intro as well as the why of some of the exercises we were doing – how did I miss that?! – in addition to talking more about the summer camp.

I think it was a combination of excitement and nerves:  new kids, adults, North Shore News photographer, and intro launch as well as the feeling perhaps of the need to entertain or inspire the children.  I had too many exercises, focusing more on doing rather than just simply being, rather than allowing more space in between!

Expressive arts therapy terms this as “liminal space.”  It is analogous to being on the threshold, the edge of the line, the space that occurs between here and there.  Yet that is the place where magic can occur, where clarity can reside or beckon you to draw nearer.  It is akin to the space or gap between the thoughts as in meditation, between the notes as in music, the silence in between all that.  It is both powerful and (potentially) deep.

Not until after reading the feedback forms later that day, did I feel both happy and deflated.  Though initially berating myself for a few days following, I put this into perspective:  the event occurred, people participated, and I got feedback!

The simple and honest feedback from the children gives me the impetus that I need to create an even better program. 

Overall, a few humbling lessons for me:  (1) a failure can be seen as a success if you apply the learning(s) from the experience (2) there is grace in humility (3) whether to acknowledge God, Spirit, Source, the Universe – use which term you prefer – I’m not the one ultimately in control!

Keeps me on my toes … on the edge of my seat … on the line…in liminal space.

What mistakes have you made that have turned out to be successes in disguise?  Like, “what’s right about this?!”