Returning Again and Again
by Starcat

As a spiritual seeker, sometimes I’ve felt like I’m looking for the ultimate magickal solution. You know, the one practice (or combination of them) that will make my life more enjoyable, more meaningful, and perpetually full of all the adventures I’d love best.

But it doesn’t really work that way.

If we human beings could ever figure it all out at once, I think that’s when we’d get the mystical tap on the shoulder from one of our spirit guides. “Okay, time to go. Great work – you’ve completed the course. Back to the non-physical plane with you. We’ve all been looking forward to your graduation party!”

What I’ve found instead, in my years of spiritual exploration, is that life itself is the ultimate spiritual practice. It really is about the journey, not the destination.

You know all those little decisions that we make, all the small choices that comprise our everyday life? In one sense, they all matter. In another, none of them do.

I don’t mean to be cryptic, so I’ll elaborate. Each choice that you make has the potential to lead you in a direction that harmonizes with your inner purpose. By mindfully returning, again and again, to the present moment, you can make choices that send you in the direction of love, of joy, of your soul’s deepest desires. Here are some recent examples from my own life. When I was upset about finances after working on my taxes for a couple hours, I chose to go do some yoga. I was offered some short-term work-for-pay that would interfere with my creative projects, and I refused it because it would have meant turning my back on my dreams in a way that I felt was unhealthy. When my mind filled with worries in the shower, I started chanting about all the ways I was loved, and it turned into a beautiful new spirit song.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not always able to turn things around right away. That’s why it’s an ongoing practice. And the great thing is, you get as many do-overs as you want.

So if each decision matters, how is it that none of them do? Because there are no wrong answers. We are here in this life to explore and to learn. If we make a decision that leads to cloudiness instead of clarity, illness instead of wellness, or sorrow instead of joy, we learn from it. We have more information and can do better next time.

If there are no consequences, some might ask, how is anyone ever motivated to choose selflessly? To be compassionate? To set aside short-term gain for long-term blessings? I think the answer, or at least part of it, is that making choices that lead to spiritual expansion feels good. When you practice opening to inner wisdom, to really deeply listening to your inner self, you’ll know. You might choose to disregard this information sometimes, but in the bigger picture, you already know what’s best for you and for the world you inhabit.

And when you move further away from that wisdom, you’ll be reminded how to return. And return you will, again and again. Blessed Be.