“Whatever your passion is, do it! Do it not because of some desired outcome, but because your soul depends on it.”–Stephanie Bennett Vogt
I put together a short video that tells my story of what let me to quit a successful twenty-year teaching career at a preeminent Boston school and find my true calling as a writer, teacher, and healer of spaces. My intention in doing so was not to brag, but to remind me how far I’ve come over the past two decades. I did it also to inspire us all to follow our dreams as we get older.
You can see my video below.
Though my tale of burnout begins in 1995, it wasn’t until I was in my fifties that something clicked and I began to realize my true calling as a teacher, writer, and healer of home spaces. Some of my proudest achievements have taken place later in life: publishing a book (and seeing it morph into several foreign languages); teaching internationally; creating two best-selling online courses for DailyOM; writing about letting go and reinvention for the Huffington Post; collaborating with brilliant colleagues; building a home from a 17th century ruin in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, and renovating another.
And those are just some of the tangibles.
There are the day-to-day intangibles that you don’t see in this video that I’m most proud of: celebrating 30 years of marriage; seeing our daughter blossom into an thriving young adult; enjoying the wisdom that comes from living 60 years and letting go, letting go, letting go!
What you don’t see here are the daily ups and downs that go with the territory of clearing the stress and clutter of our lives. Harder still to convey are the millions of choice points; the slow revealing of opportunities; the messy unfolding of a journey that doesn’t always add up, make sense, or go in a straight line. No video can capture the subtle, imperceptible victories that come from taking one baby step at a time with compassionate awareness.
What I can say is this: our willingness to hang in there, do the work, and let go of attachment can lead to riches – both tangible and intangible – beyond our wildest imaginings.
I am living proof that.
Happy clearing!
Stephanie Bennett Vogt
One-Minute Clearing Practice
What is one thing that you love to do that makes you giddy just thinking about it? What is one thing you’ve been holding off on because it is too expensive, too inconvenient, too hard, too [fill in the blank]? What is one thing on your bucket list?
Try imagining for one minute that there are no obstacles to realizing your dream. Breathe it in. Feel the joy and excitement down to your bones. Repeat this intentional practice every day until something shifts or clicks!
p.s. If you find this message helpful, please forward it to someone else (or share, like, tweet, pin… ) and let’s build the clearing energy together that will help to lighten all of our loads!
