The Search My dad died on Fairview Golf Course 9 years ago. It’s not a sad thing, I should be so lucky. To die doing what one loves is a gift. At 80 years of age, he loved to play golf. His handicap was 20 something, so winning had nothing to do with his enjoyment. He loved the social aspects: four guys cheering over a par and laughing at each others jokes. He enjoyed his scotch, his cabernet, and his barbequed steak. He worked in chemical plants in New Jersey, California and Louisiana, and I seriously doubt he ever asked the question “What is my calling? I, on the other hand, have spent nearly my entire life wondering what my calling is. Un-leashed at 18, I left home for college. It was 1963 when I began my search. Due to poor choices I flunked Chemistry, barely passed Sociology, and poetry and music clearly were not my strong suits. Then one morning I stumbled into a dramatic literature class. There was Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex waiting to open my mind and stimulate my imagination. After Oedipus, I read the other extant ancient Greek Playwrights. I skimmed Shakespeare, Moliere and Ibsen - only to be handed Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot, - deep, really deep and dark, Beckett led me to other dark playwrights. None, not even Sartre, gave me an answer. Still, I stayed and searched and played in the theater for nearly forty years. After I retired I continued to search. Maybe the search is my calling. Recently I received an email with an article entitled “5 Essential Questions to Lead You to Your Calling,” by Agapi Stassinopoulos. (See link below) Yet another search prompt to which I didn’t need to respond - but did. The questions are not esoteric – nothing deep or dark. They appear simple in their directness. Yet I expect the answers could be enlightening if I really allow them to percolate and penetrate. Her questions remind me of the work I’d done with The Ripple Foundation (TRF) over the past few years. Inward Bound, Call to Adventure and The Hero Within all provide prompts and opportunities to reflect, change and grow. The experiential and cerebral nature of TRF’s offerings help individuals discover and develop their inner Self. These offerings also explore the relationship between the Self and the self as shared and projected into our daily, wary, interpersonal encounters. Stassinopoulos’ five questions begin with “What am I here to…” Just for fun, take 30 seconds, before you read further, and write down 5 words to complete the question. Now take a moment and compare your 5 with Stassinopoulos five and my totally different five. How are yours different? Similar? Stassinopoulos Mine What am I here to… Learn? Do? What am I here to… Teach? Be? What am I here to… Overcome? Love? What am I here to… Complete? Care for? What am I here to… Express? Nurture? Maybe if you are like my father you have no need to search for your calling, but then why would you be reading this blog? If you like introspection, have a longing for your calling or just like “The Search,” take some time to answer her questions your own. Here is a link to Stassinopoulos blog huffingtonpost/agapi-stassinopoulos/finding-your-calling_b_3727704.html Dig a little deeper and bring your Self and your self a little closer to each other. If that doesn’t satisfy your appetite then come take a class with The Ripple Foundation. I did. And I’m a better person for it.
Posted on: Mon, 23 Sep 2013 20:10:23 +0000
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