I prepare myself, for life may narrow in ways I cannot predict, taking away conveniences and recognition I once thought would always be mine,
I prepare myself, because I do not want every change in circumstance to become a crisis simply because I forgot how to live without life made easier,
I prepare myself, knowing age may ask different things of my body, money may move differently, and access may change without asking if I am ready,
I prepare myself, if these things disappeared, would I still know how to make an ordinary day feel mine again,
I prepare myself, I begin to understand that resilience is knowing what remains when the outside becomes smaller…
I protect what matters, keeping close the parts of my life that do not depend on having more, moving faster, being seen, or having every option,
I protect what matters, because I want my creativity, attention, relationships, and ability to make meaning to remain even when other forms of abundance become uncertain,
I protect what matters, learning that preparation is not expecting loss but refusing to let its possibility make me afraid to live fully,
I protect what matters, what inside me would I be most afraid of losing if everything external suddenly became simpler,
I protect what matters, and I become more deliberate about where I place my strength…
I release gradually, practicing small endings before life gives me the larger ones I may not be able to negotiate,
I release gradually, letting old expectations loosen so change does not have to tear everything apart before I accept that something has shifted,
I release gradually, because enjoying what I have is different from building my identity around being able to keep it forever,
I release gradually, what am I holding so tightly that I have forgotten how to live comfortably without it,
I release gradually, less begins to feel less like deprivation and more like another shape life can take…
I trust what remains, not because I believe nothing difficult will happen but because I am learning that a life can become smaller but becoming fuller,
I trust what remains, the ability to notice beauty, make something with my hands, begin again, care deeply, still find another way,
I trust what remains, I want to grow older without fearing every door that closes or every version of myself that must change,
I trust what remains, when circumstances change around me, do I still recognize the person who knows how to live from what is in the present,
I trust what remains, that feels like a different kind of abundance I really needed…
Watchwords:
Resilience is knowing what remains
Protecting what matters
Preparing without expecting loss
Another shape life can take
A different kind of abundance
Here is Tikatarot, who dares you to answer the question, “Who am I?”..
As and will always be reminding you to dream: