treasure-mapping

 I heard about treasure-mapping here, though the general idea had been floating around my awareness for some time. There is something about that name, though - treasure mapping - that caught me, somewhere between my seeker-self and my inner pirate. A map of your life's treasure - all that awaits you if only you know how to look for it.  Pretty alluring. I put it off for a long time, occasionally trying to cajole some time out of friends and family to join me in an afternoon of intentional cut-and-paste, but it never worked out, the timing was just never right.

 I finally made time over the span of a few days, to make a go of it this past week, during the new moon in Aries. I know almost nothing about the astrological significance of this, except that old farmers and new knowledge-seekers alike recognize it as a time for beginnings, setting new intentions, planting seeds.  I found this about it;  What's great about Aries is it burns off the inessential, the trivial, or what covers up your original radiance. You see through to the searing truth. It's about direct engagement with life. New Moons are fresh starts, making this one the Grand Opening to a new epoch and identity that holds the element of surprise.

"Direct engagement with life". That sounds pretty good, doesn't it?  Magazines, photos, notes from friends, scissors, wine, and glue sticks assembled, I moved through the different aspects of my map - abundance/prosperity, family/community, self-knowledge/wisdom, health, reputation, spirituality, creativity, life-purpose and love - and found repeatedly that there were no major changes I was looking to make. Just more...time for myself, energy for everything, laughter and levity, flexibility, openness, engagement.

  

I felt like I was drawn towards making broad strokes, which might come from not feeling a lot of control over the next two years of our lives, as Dan works towards finishing his degree.  The focus I have is on attitude, mindfulness, staying awake.  I imagine that at another time my intentions might be focused on more of the specifics, as we search for a new community to become a part of and worry over the details of building another incarnation of our family life elsewhere, but right now life is really really good in all of the ways that are important.  It was a gift to sit and focus on that for a while, after weeks of feeling hopeless and helpless and trivial in the workings of the world. A gift to work on something a little beautiful and mine.