I often think of the metaphor of a bus when I think about how I am being in the world, and about my life.

“Who’s driving my bus?” Is it the scared little kid, or the empowered, resourceful adult? I welcome all “inner parts” to be on the bus, but some of them…well, I don’t want them driving the bus.

Then there is the question of how much I’m carrying on my bus. You know…beliefs, assumptions, physical stuff.

The bus above is a Hay Bus. It is a converted School Bus that a farm in Marengo uses to deliver very large loads of hay to local farms, for horse and cattle feed.

When I saw it, I knew I was given a gift: When you need a bigger bus, it’s time to look at how much you’re carrying around. so the question came to me, for me: What can I offload from my bus, that I no longer need to carry around?

And I offer the question to you, too: What can you offload?

It’s a rainy day, and I am noticing the beautiful, circular ripples that the raindrops are causing on the surface of the pond.

It is like a drop of energy hits the surface of the water, and then it radiates out in circles.

This makes me think about how important it is for me to always be, as much as I can, the person that I want to be in my daily life.

I may think that it doesn’t make a difference, or that it isn’t worth paying attention to, but I realize, when I look at these ripples, that my energy, my intention, my attitude, goes out in ripples, just like these ripples on the pond.

When I’m snarky, that’s what goes out. When I’m loving, that’s what goes out. It is truly as simple as that.

It is a miracle, really, that we get to choose.

What ripples do you want to send out today?

My dog Harper and I have ducked outside for a quick walk, in the moments between rain. We are slogging through mud and soggy ground. It is dark and grey and the sky is thinking of raining again.

There has been so much kvetching about the weather in the last few weeks. It is April, and a transition time, and people are weary. They are wanting for sun, and are having difficulty seeing anything beyond the howling winds and the grey. It seems to have gotten to even the most optimistic of us.

Yes, it is true; we’ve had snow, sleet, hail, and more in the last few weeks. And a lot of wind. There is so much water that it seems like the land doesn’t know what to do with it.

I have to keep consciously pulling myself back into the realization that there are also signs of beauty and joy and aliveness everywhere.

Trees are filled with flocks of singing birds, passing through on migration.

The honeysuckle are leafing out.

There are geese feeding in the fields, and ducks in the pond. The frogsong is going almost 24/7.

A small songbird, newly arrived from its winter migration grounds, is walking down a tree trunk, looking for bugs to eat.

Daffodils are springing up and blooming by the side of the road.

Delicate blue flowers are taking over the woods.

The world is awash in aliveness. Nature is getting on with the business of Spring.

Sometimes I must train my eyes what to see again, and what to focus on.

I need to pull my ears away from the prevailing stream of kvetching, and turn my focus to the other truth: that there are beautiful gifts for the eyes and the ears, everywhere. When I do that, I see a pair of Cardinals building a nest, and I forget about the raindrops.

What is the joy that your world is showing you today?

Walking with my dog Harper could be a frustrating experience if I let it be.

I love him dearly, but he’s a challenge to walk. When he was a pup, and I was not as good at being Alpha Dog, he pulled me over and I broke my ankle, on a walk. He’s a strong dog. And a willful one sometimes.

Nowadays, the challenge is more about where he’d like to go vs where I’d like to go. I’m a lot stronger and I have developed more command presence, at least with my dogs. 🙂

Tonight, on a sunset walk, we were in our usual push-pull dynamic when I suddenly realized that I can choose not to enforce my will in this situation anymore. It was a classic Duh Moment.

It is only a push-pull because I have an agenda when we walk. I have a plan about where we’ll go and how fast we’ll get there.

What I realized tonight was that there is no reason for me to have an agenda when we walk. It seems like I have agendas for a lot of things in my life, and I’d frankly like to be freed of some of them.

Apart from starting and finishing at the house, and having an approximate time frame in mind for our walks, I can let go of my agenda, and see where it takes us.

We have to be safe, but Harper sits by the side of the road when cars come by, so that isn’t a problem.

I realized that as long as I stay fully present, I could give into Harper’s wandering aimlessly.

This was a revelation, much like what I discovered in Harper Time.

We noticed a crocus bloom, with a honey bee collecting the nectar.

We visited the pond. There were ducks there. They had just arrived from their winter migration area. The frogs were singing.

We went by the stand of blue spruce, where some red-winged blackbirds and robins were serenading us as they settled in for the night.

We made a pass by the lone tree in the school yard, to check for new scents.

And when we reached the end of the lane by the school, Harper was ready to turn around and head back. Easy; he didn’t pull at all, because I wasn’t resisting.

When we got home, I sat down to think about where in my life I am making things more challenging than they need to be, just by virtue of my habits or beliefs, and where I can lighten up!

Harper just wants to enjoy his life, and I can take a page out of his playbook.

Stay tuned to see if we end up in the middle of a muddy cornfield on our next walk! 🙂

Where would you like to lighten up in your life?