Aha!

Just a glimpse into daily text conversations with my dad:

Me: How do I learn to be happy in the moment instead of always planning for the distant future?

Dad: Sometimes we try to make things happen instead of letting things happen. When you force things, as soon as you stop exerting the pressure, it falls apart. When you let things happen, it will be easy and effortless. It all comes from within. You have to learn to trust your inner voice.

Me: But what if my inner voice isn't speaking up?

Dad: It may be a voice, a feeling. It may be something or someone who comes into your life. You need to set the direction, and you will be guided. Listen and be aware of what shows up. If you don't know the direction, ask for guidance and then listen and be aware. You have to trust that the all-knower within you provides your every answer as you need it.

I've been told by many people that I think too much and that I'm my father's daughter. To be honest, I wouldn't have it any other way. I want to constantly improve and grow as a person so that I can then pay it forward to others as my dad has to me.

In the past year or so I've been trying to get away from planning and instead listen to and follow my heart. So, I've taken my dad's advice and set the direction. Now I'm going along for the ride. It's interesting, my eyes are starting to open up to things I didn't see before.

This week, one of my major "aha moments" was when I was helping the little girls I babysit do their homework. I LOVED helping them learn new things and teaching them tricks I learned as a child to understand better. And every night, I'd read to them for at least 30 minutes and then after a few days, they wanted to read to me.

Personally, I know education equates to confidence. I was always a straight A student and because of that, it filled me with pride to be able to transfer and share knowledge with others. Even now, I love to teach people of all ages things that I've learned throughout my life, whether from school or my travels.

I have a feeling I need to listen to my inner voice that keeps reminding me how much I love knowledge-sharing. This doesn't mean I'm going to head back to school to become a teacher, but it does mean I somehow need to creatively incorporate it into my life.

Ideas?