Digging for treasure.
On Monday afternoon, I was in a bit of a rush.
I was behind on some important chores - especially moving the pigs - and there was a family dinner starting at 4. I barged outside with the mindset that I was going to stay focused and just get everything done as quickly as possible.
As I headed over to the pigs, I noticed a truck slow down in front of the farm. The truck pulled into the driveway and curiosity got the better of me. I headed over to see who it was and what they wanted.
A guy had just gotten out of the truck and walked over smiling. He explained that he was an avid metal detector and thought the property would be cool to dig around on.
At first I thought he was asking if he could come back some other time, but I soon realized he meant he was hoping to look right then.
My thoughts went a few different places. First, it went to my chores. Did I really want this distraction? Then it went to all the cool things he may get the pleasure of digging up. Wouldn't it be fun to do that with the kids?
And what if he found something cool that I wanted? I didn't want to just give up all the potential treasure!
I hesitated at first. I almost told him I would think about it and let him know.
But then my mind went to a concept that I've been thinking about a lot over the past few months: allowing.
For much of my life, I have operated under an implicit assumption that the good things in my life all come directly from my own effort. That I am in full control, that it is up to me to make things happen.
This mindset can lead to the foolish decision to turn away an exciting opportunity because you weren't the one who made it happen. This isn't what I'm working on right now, so maybe some other time. I have done this more times than I can count.
I get so stuck in my own little narrow window of current focus that I forget about all the other things that are exciting and cool.
I have learned over the years that if you get good at allowing the Universe to deliver good things to you, you can reap far more rewards than if you demand they all come from your own sweat.
Allowing is simple.
Allowing is saying yes to good opportunities even if you weren't the person who put in the effort.
Allowing is considering an opportunity even if it gets in the way of the schedule you had before you knew about it.
Allowing is being spontaneous.
Allowing is going with the flow.
Allowing is being a co-creator.
On Monday, I decided to allow.
This was a great decision.
For one, he found tons of cool relics. He found spoons from the early to mid 1800's that were dumped below the house. He found both sides to a heart locket. He found an organ reed, a piece of an old watch, and old coins.
He let me keep all of it. He said he was there because he liked doing it, and that he thought those things should stay with the house. He offered to make me a shadow box to display them in. I said yes to that too.
The whole experience filled me with energy. As I went through my chores, I kept stopping to go over and check to see what he had found so far.
Imagine... all these cool things, magically jumping out of the ground around our house and into my hands. No effort required on my part at all.
He said he just scratched the surface of what was hiding around the property in the 1-2 hours he was there. Who knows where this will lead?
When I reflect back on the major turning points in my life, they all involve allowing to some degree.
In college, I wasn't sure what to do with my life, so I planned to go on a 4-month trekking expedition through the Borneo jungle while doing a research project on the forests as part of an environmental science degree. This was set to happen between my junior and senior years.
Junior year, I met Chesley. By the time summer rolled around, I had made the decision to allow. The most wonderful thing of my life just fell in my lap, right when I was committed to getting out of Dodge.
Our excursion to Hawaii was an act of allowing.
Our purchase of 575 Thomas School Road was an act of allowing. Bert came to visit us at the condo we were renting, and within a couple days we were shaking hands to buy his neighbors house that wasn't even on the market.
Our other neighbor at that house walked over and handed me a book one day that inspired me to want a farm. By all metrics, it was impossible for us to obtain a farm. The numbers just didn't work out. There was also too much to do at the house before anyone would buy it.
That all turned out to be wrong as well. The Universe was conspiring for me. The perfect farm was making itself available just 15 minutes down the road. Another neighbor bought our house the same day I stuck a for sale sign in the front yard.
Here are the lessons that jump out at me from all this:
- Always be on the lookout for opportunities.
- When opportunity knocks, don't be so self absorbed that you turn it away just because it doesn't line up with your current plan.
- Related to #2, be flexible. Make time for people. People will show up when you don't expect. That's okay. I don't think I've ever regretted a good conversation.
- Don't tell yourself your dreams can't happen because you can't see the path forward. Take the time to day dream. The more time you spend thinking about cool things, the more cool things will come to you. Part of this is because you are priming yourself to recognize opportunities. Sometimes the Universe will deliver something so perfect that it's hard to explain though. Just say yes and thank you.
On that note, always say thank you.
Of all the things you can do to live a happier life, allowing and being grateful are by far two of the best "investments" you can make. The returns are near infinite, and they cost you nothing.
Beat that in the stock market.
Life is good.