Just being me, today...

© Jenn Shallvey

Today.

A lot can happen that seems insignificant yet in total is significant.

Meditating.

Came out of meditation with a feeling like I should be somewhere else. Yes, my chiropractor appointment started 15 minutes ago, not 2 hours later as I thought! Mad dash, safely driving of course, to align my body and me. Thankful for the help and a patient chiropractor who cares.

Working lunch at local café.

Creative admin time - consolidating and simplifying websites. Overdue task to match my latest evolution. Yes. I am always seeking and evolving me to new levels. Agreed with chiropractor-challenge of acting on many ideas is you can lose focus and have too much on your plate. Back to focusing.

Side chat with two lovely ladies.

Sharing a table with other laptop carrying nomads, I could not help but overhear tidbits of a conversation (plus I left my earphones at home). Words popped up - websites, trademarks, products etc. I risk it and open up that I have done a few of these things in my 14 years in business on my own. May I help? Mostly all in order-both already have their own businesses. On a couple of matters these sure to be successful passionate business women co-creating a new venture invite me to share my experience. No ulterior motive. No trying to get something from each other. Simply a genuine opening up and neighbourly conversation.  Smiles on our faces, a farewell and a promise of mine to connect them to another if I can. 

A ‘surprise’ visitor.

A man asks permission to sit at the table. Of course! I don’t own it. It’s a community table, though my time camped there with laptop might indicate otherwise.  We exchange stories. Smiles and hellos are not enough. A visit from across the Tasman to surprise his girlfriend he decides to camp out here and do some work. A fellow entrepreneur sole business person enjoying the flexibility of his work. So much more to him though than ‘what do you do?’.  We talk about balance in property development – how do you preserve and develop. The environment does matter. ‘Why you do what you do’ matters too. Back to our laptops.

Time to move the body.

Swimming at ‘my pool’- the one that I share with the rest of North Sydney and beyond. Soul restoring and physically rejuvenating. Vitamin D intake for day – tick. On my way out I stop again to reflect on the history, read the posters – especially noting the one about installing floodlighting in the 1930s. I share the lift and some conversation with an older man. We both love the pool, it’s history and especially want to preserve and retain the art deco aspects and original ‘charm’.  I remark about how much I love the lights here but am glad there won’t be any over the park up the road. I remark how amazing it was to see community voices being heard for a change. He agreed. He was at the meeting when the vote happened.  Small world.

Postbox visit.

Yes I still use snail mail. A lady is smoking a cigarette behind my car. She sees me and apologises profusely. She confesses she is more than embarrassed, hates herself for the habit, and just wants to quit but it is so hard. I hate smoking and even the smell of cigarette smoke residue can put me off – blame two smoking parents in the car on winding road trips.

News flash…I don’t hate her. I don’t hate my parents. I don’t hate anyone because they choose to smoke, I just am one of many who don’t like smoking. I smile and say “We all have our vices, or at least what we say to ourselves or someone tells us is a vice. What you say is your ‘bad habit’ is just highly visible.” I ask if I can say something? “What?” “Well perhaps the habit to give up is not smoking but judging and being so hard on yourself. Then you can decide what you do and don’t do. And it won’t be because of what other people say either.  I am not an expert but I do know how hard this habit is to break, the judging-of-self one. It has taken me a lifetime to learn not to worry what others think and I still am not there yet.”

We agree that being in our middle years of life is greater ammunition these days to not worry about what other’s think. Easier said than done. Much like kicking the habits that no longer serve us.  

An evening walk.

A change of pace. A stroll along the harbour with my husband. Pinching myself that we live near here. Pinching myself that there are these spots of beauty to be enjoyed by all. Thankful again that someone many years ago said ‘wouldn’t it be nice if we save a bit of land on the foreshore for all of us to enjoy?’

Today.  A day of encounters with real people. All of us finding our own way in this world figuring out how to be today and tomorrow.   Appreciating the detail and connecting and just being curious and communicative me in the midst of it all.