Soul Lodger
Hey Friend,
We are having a heatwave! I see brown grass everywhere. There are piles of snow still in parking lots, but wow it has almost all melted. I already miss it. The white coating creates a delightful covering offering another version of my surroundings. Long before filters existed that enhanced reality, snow played that role.
This week also contained unexpected work opportunities that strengthened my faith. I'm grateful for every chance to use my life, skills and gifts to impact humanity positively. Oh, also I went to the dentist. I know it's not publicly copasetic to admit, but I haven't been in a few years. My caring wife has offered encouragement for some time for me to go. I finally concurred.
It's not because I'm afraid of the dentist. Or that I don't like going. On the contrary, if you can believe it, I have a blast when I go. This time was consistent with my previous experiences. The hygienist said I was a "unicorn" of a patient. My teeth seem to naturally deflect plaque build up and my gums stay strong. My last dentist told me something similar, which I interpreted to mean I don't really need to visit that often. So I don't.
Granted, my mouth is full of silver. My childhood dentist found at least one cavity every visit. He filled my mouth, charged my mom, and made his boat payment. There were no second opinions. There was no questioning options. There was no examining x-rays closely. I believe they're referred to as the "good ol' days."
CHILDHOOD TRANSPORT
Going to the dentist, like returning to a childhood home, immediately unlocks layers of memories. Not actually of the dentist, but of my childhood. BMX bikes, Saturday morning arcade, colleco-vision, baseball, walking to Grant school, Brookside park and so much more. I'm grateful for the many positive mental souvenirs that percolate.
I'm jealous of my stunning wife. She is a third grade teacher. She currently lives in the hearts and minds of hundreds and hundreds of kids, who will carry her with them the rest of their life. Literally. How cool would it be to exist in the landscape of memories and when we popped up it brought a dopamine hit for the person recalling? What would it take from us to be the kind of person who lodges in the soul of another?
MINDSHIFT
What if you interacted with others intentionally to be such a force of goodness that your essence permanently remained and when accessed became a source of courage and hope?
SOUL LODGER
I like that phrase above that I just wrote "lodges in the soul"... I think of that word "lodges" like "wedged" as if it were stuck in-between. However, it also is like a lodger, someone who is living within a domain. Who do we let lodge in our soul? Are there folks dwelling in our hearts and minds that provide the opposite of courage and hope? Have we offered room and board in the depths of our being to those who drain, diminish and deny our spirit? Why?
We are certainly the sum of our relationships. Both as kids and adults the adage that we become like the five closest people to us is accurate. However, we also become like the voices inside us dictate. You might have more than five. What's the ratio of Soul Lodgers you host who provide positive, encouraging expressions to those who are negative, doubters of you and your growth?
MINDSHIFT
What if you evicted a few soul lodgers who you've let live too long in your mind?
LIFT
Why is being positive so hard? Anne, my hygienist, was from New Jersey, her husband was retired and she was semi-retired and only worked two days a week. When I left she said "You really made my day. Thank you." I was simply interested and curious. That was enough to impact her in a very positive way. I became a day lodger in her soul.
People all around us are hungry, if not desperate, to have their spirit lifted. We are capable of doing that!
Have you ever considered that the longer you let those negative soul lodgers remain within you, the less joy you are able to bring to others? We think about the effect they have on us. But why they're so dastardly is because they thwart the positive impact we are designed to have on others and the world around us. I realize you probably love those lodgers, that's why they are there. Let's consider moving them out and watch good flow out of us.
SHIFTING
I hope this week you become very conscious of who, and which voices, you are allowing to take up space and start the eviction process. We need you shining brightly! #ShiftAway
