Dave Lukas

The practice of Taoism resonates with me. I’ve read some and I want to read more. And yet I’ve read enough to know that’s a contradictory statement for a Taoist. One of the core ideas of Taoism is not to force things and sink into the flow of life/the Tao.

I connected that idea to my creativity today in that how I’d like to show up in the world is to follow where my creativity wants to go. To not force it and sink into the flow of my creativity. I hadn’t connected creativity and Taoism before but now it’s like this “duh” moment of “of course they’re like the same!”

So now that I’ve made the connection, I’ll try to remember not to force creativity and let it show up how it’s supposed to. But I say that while also acknowledging that if I don’t make the time to sit down to create or to write, it might not happen. The idea of “waiting for inspiration to strike” is a sure fire way to not create much.

How do I strike the balance on sinking into the flow of the Tao and my creativity with intentionally making time to create? Is that statement contradictory?

Perhaps the connection lies in how a Taoist wouldn’t question why a tree grows its’ leaves that way or why it’s raining today or why clouds are formed the way they are, those things just are and nature is never right or wrong. She just is. A Taoist just is.

My creativity just is. The work is not to question why I want to work with my brush pens or why I want to make a collage or how does that connect to what I made yesterday. The work is choosing to sit down at the metaphorical river and sinking into the flow of my creativity and seeing where it leads or wants to go. To not question it or try to understand it. Let it flow and it won’t be right or wrong, it will just be.

Easier said than done for sure, but thinking through these pieces helps refine the way I want to show up in the world so that I can check in and adjust as needed. I’ll never get it perfect or right (whatever that means), but I can show up today and that’s enough. Cause by bringing that intentionality I give myself the chance to practice and step into the flow of life to see where it leads.

Exploring and trying to rest in the process. I know it’s cliche, but I do believe there’s energy there vs focusing on turning out something good or worthwhile. By only focusing on the output. It’s only by doing that progress happens.

I don’t get better as an artist, spouse, athlete, parent, employee if I don’t focus on the process. To ensure that feels good and is aligned with who I want to be in the world.

It’s easy to fall out of process when I’m not focused on it or I’m putting the emphasis on the outcome of it. So I’m trying to lean in on the daily process while letting go of expectations. It’s not easy as I’m hard wired to feel like things need to have a purpose or outcome. Cause if they don’t, then why bother doing them? But it’s not an all or nothing situation. The other thing I need is to challenge my mindset on the polar opposite outcomes being the only results. Chances are things will fall between those extremes. I struggle to see that middle ground as well.

So I either have a process or I don’t. What if I flip that to have a process for just today? Maybe it looks like it did yesterday or last week, but I don’t have to establish a process today and live with it the rest of my life. Cause the odds are pretty good that I’ll evolve, life will evolve and so will my process.

It will never be perfect. Never capture all the facets, so make the best possible choice for today, for this moment, trust in that, commit and do it. Then move forward and approach it all again tomorrow. When these daily things build, it will be easy to look back and see the progress and evolution and how all the dots connect. But that’s impossible now!

So trust in the process of this moment and as long as it aligns to who I want to be or how I want to show up in the world, the rest doesn’t matter. It doesn’t need to connect to something else or draw a theme. It can just be. The thread and themes come later after the process has been going for a little bit. But it can’t establish itself without me first doing the thing.

Plus I believe in the universe to illuminate my path, but I need to do my part first. And that part now is the daily process. And then start again tomorrow. Let the universe connect the dots, she’s good at that. But I can control me and that starts with my process today.

This weekend finally felt like spring. While out on my run yesterday, I noticed way more buds on trees and pops of green, which made me smile. Plus being away from home for a couple days brought unexpected surprises when we got home to see more colors from flowers and buds on trees. It was like a little present after being gone a couple days.

Couple all that with the warmer temps and it was lovely to think spring is here. Which corresponds nicely (coincidentally?) with how I’m feeling. Like there’s something blooming. I don’t know what it is yet and I’m trying not to focus on it or try to figure it out. Trying to just let it be and see what grows.

Cause isn’t that the magic and wonder of spring? It’s hard for me to do, but I guess that means it’s the work I need to be doing.

So here’s today’s offering and I’ll show up tomorrow and see what’s grown. One day at a time.

I read a quote on Kening Zhu’s website that spun my brain.

I can’t find the link at the moment or quote, but the gist is that her brother didn’t know how to help her as she cast off on her own away from a traditional job cause she was in the ocean and not in a swim lane. It’s easier to help people and feel less scared for them when they’re in the swim lane. The ocean is scary.

This got me thinking about how I try to show up at work, which is swim lane all the way. Yet I’ve been able to bring some ocean in with me to the corporate world. I’m able to bring how I am to my coworkers and show up for them and be authentically me. It’s like I’ve brought the ocean into the swimming lane with me.

That or there’s an underground ocean beneath the swim lane. Kind of like the hollow earth theory from the show Monarch: Legacy of Monsters. That there’s this whole other world beneath our world where the titans like Godzilla, Kong, etc came from and live.

Don’t know and can’t connect all the dots but that’s ok. I don’t have to and it’s not my job to connect them. Sometimes it’s ok to wonder. Trying to rest in that concept vs having it all figured out.

The Mary Rueffle quote: “I’d rather wonder than know.” Is ringing in my brain. So I’ll leave it there for now.