Is it a set of philosophical or spiritual beliefs and practices? A path you’ve carved out for yourself or one given to you by a teacher?

As the saying goes, “When the student is ready, the teacher appears,” whether that be an actual person or a series of life lessons presented to you.

According to Greek mythology, a hero follows a thread.

As told by Joseph Campbell in The Hero with a Thousand Faces, the legend goes like this: King Minos of Crete had successfully waged war with the Athenians. He then demanded that, at seven-year intervals, seven Athenian boys and seven Athenian girls were to be sent to Crete to be devoured by the Minotaur, a half-man half-bull creature who lived in a labyrinth created by Daedalus, a cunning craftsman. One version has it that Daedalus had constructed the labyrinth so cunningly that he himself could barely escape it after he built it.

Theseus, a king of Athens volunteered to slay the monster. Out of love for Theseus, King Minos’ daughter, Ariadne, consulted Daedalus who told her to give Theseus a ball of string so he could find his way out once he had gone into the labyrinth. She also returned a sword to him.

As soon as Theseus entered the labyrinth, he tied one end of the ball of string to the door post and brandished the sword he had hidden inside his tunic. Theseus followed Daedalus’ instructions given to Ariadne: go forwards, always down and never left or right. Theseus came to the heart of the labyrinth and also upon the sleeping Minotaur whom he killed. He then used Ariadne’s thread to escape the labyrinth and return to safety.

Stephen Spielberg considered Joseph Campbell his teacher and mentor, and he used the hero’s journey as a model for his Star Wars series.

In one of the films, Luke Skywalker fights with Darth Vader, knocking off Vader’s helmet. What he finds is his own likeness: a suggestion that, at the heart of the matter, Luke’s true battle is with himself.

It has been said that our one and only task is to master ourselves, to make peace with that self.

In Campbell’s words: “The flax for the linen of his thread he has gathered from the fields of the human imagination. Centuries of husbandry, decades of diligent culling, the work of numerous hearts and hands, have gone into the hackling, sorting, and spinning of this tightly twisted yarn.

Furthermore, we have not even to risk the adventure alone; for the heroes of all time have gone before us; the labyrinth is thoroughly known; we have only to follow the thread of the hero-path… where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves; where we had thought to travel outward, we shall come to the center of our own existence; where we had thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world.”

Don’t you love the maps found in large shopping malls or office complexes? The first thing you see is the circle with the X inside it saying “You are here.”

“Oh,” you say, “This is where I am, so now I know which direction to turn to get to where I want to be.”

Without the knowledge of where you are, you can’t know how close or far away you are from your destination. Just so, it’s important to know where you are in the great scheme of things in life. This question presupposes that you know something about the big picture and something about your destination (destiny).

And within these questions: “Who am I?”

My mother always told me, “Just be yourself, and you’ll be fine.” But who is that self? And how do you find out?

Questions, questions. When you’re searching for truth, what you often find first are questions to be explored if not answered definitively. Your answers may change and grow from time to time.

“The unexamined life is not worth living,” said Socrates. And behind that statement?

Well, that assumes you have a life to begin with. That means you have to live life first in order to examine it. If it is true that the unexamined life is not worth living, then it follows that the unlived life is also not worth examining.

Aspiring writers and actors are often told, “First, you have to live.” You have to have something to write about and experiences to draw upon.

Thoughtful and juicy questions may be one of the best ways to explore and examine your life to allow you to fully live and appreciate the life you have here and now, rather than wishing for some other place or some other life. This is what you have. Now is what you have. Here is what you have. Work with what you have.

If you’re in the here and now, just look about you. Be here. Be now. Describe what you see, feel, smell, taste, hear, touch. You’ll soon enough find plenty to think about and write about, plenty to ponder.

Formal writing prompts and jump-start quotations can also be brilliant food for thought. And why do they appeal to you? Because they’ve acted as an entrance into your own inner life. Something within you resonated with what you found in someone else’s experience.

Reading biographies, memoirs, autobiographies, and fiction can help you to explore your own life stories, both old and new. Can help you re-interpret your past stories to use them as building blocks for your new paths.

You learn that you are not alone in all the world. You no longer have to remain “a stranger in a strange land.” You can find at least one other story that is remarkably like your own. You learn that others have faced and surmounted the same challenges that you do. “The way is thoroughly known,” wrote Joseph Campbell. You are not the first to tread this path, to make this journey.

And those who have gone before you have left maps. They have pointed out the rocks, crevasses, mountains, dangerous swamps and quicksand. They can inspire you to a new level of living. By showing you what peace and happiness they have attained. They can teach you if you will read, listen, and be open to learning.

Be teachable.

Practice beginner’s mind at whatever stage you find yourself, and you may find that one or more “maps” buried in your library, bookstore, or Internet sites will both show you the big picture and say to you, “You are here.”

***

Great List of Personal Development Blogs:

From Gretchen Rubin’s post on her wonderful Happiness Project blog, I learned of a list of the top blogs in the personal development field. These are 65 of the most-read of blogs that offer regular, practical, and usable information. Check it out at:

http://www.pluginid.com/personal-development/

The weeds (mostly grass) are taller than many of the things I’ve planted and are in the process of reseeding themselves. Most everything looks puny or a little blighted. The potato plants simply shriveled up before blooming, the zucchini blossoms stay on the stem but don’t bear fruit, the basil looks a tad pale, and the cilantro has bolted, gone to seed, and turned a crispy brown. It looks pretty awful, I must say.

On the other hand, the coleus and other pots of annuals are doing well, and this morning’s perusal of the kitchen garden netted a double handful of bursting-with-sweetness cherry tomatoes (I gobbled them right off the vine), three little cucumbers, four fingerling potatoes, and all the sage, mint, and thyme I could hope for. So not so bad. The cucumbers will go in tonight’s salad, and I’ll boil the potatoes with sage and thyme.

Considering the small amount of time and energy I’ve put into the project, I’m still getting an inordinate amount of delight as I pull fists full of grass. I know that no chemicals have been used, so I won’t even have to peel the cukes.

Oh, I almost forgot: the best part is that I finally found a little patch of lamb’s quarters (Chenopodium album) to transplant, and I have my eye on a few other isolated plants that I’ll put with the rest. The unenlightened call them weeds, but I was raised on their spinach-like vitamins and minerals.

Taste of home, taste of spring and summer, taste of childhood, cutting greens on the way back from the asparagus bed.

Olive oil, garlic, sweet onions, herbs, four little potatoes, “a mess of greens,” and now I know what else is on the menu for later tonight.

As with most everything else in life, I suppose it’s all in how you look at it. We always have choices. I declare it all a roaring success, and that’s that.

After all, we all need planning time, time for reflection, decision-making time, problem-solving time, and time for “simply being.”

The big question is: “How can we begin creating thinking time?” Many of us find ourselves caught up in work, deadlines, crises, and the needs or demands of others. “Me time” can be hard to find or create.

For many of us, thinking time means writing time. Writing and journaling clarify our thinking, reveal hidden patterns and messages, and often bring the vague unknowns into conscious thought. As British novelist E. M. Forster asked, “How do I know what I think until I see what I say?”

Whether it’s a legal pad, a journal, sketch book, lab book, or log, the writing process is one of the best ways to promote clear thinking and decision making.

So how do we go about creating thinking time? The answers are as diverse as our personalities, proclivities, and environments.

A simple change of view can do wonders, whether it involves a walk during a break, lunch alfresco instead of “aldesko” at work, or pulling out a journal for a short writing break. Better yet is a longer period of time to let our ideas, needs, wants, plans, and hearts’ desires pour out at their leisure. A long walk or drive can let our minds unhook to be come relaxed and receptive.

Haven’t we all noticed that some of our best ideas or insights occur after exercise, using our hands in our favorite craft, gardening, or even while we’re not even aware of thinking. Long commutes, favorite music, and being in nature can stimulate some of our best thinking.

Creating thinking time is so important that we nearly always need to plan for it. This might mean making “artist’s dates” with yourself, scheduling “down time” and recreation, and making time for meditation. Simply setting aside a place and time for quiet and reflection can make all the difference. Some of us might want to take a break from the constant demands of our cell phones.

The most productive creators and inventors have taken frequent breaks and naps. The brain can only work efficiently for a certain period (around 40 minutes) before it needs a rest or change of pace.

Many of us like to sort things out by writing, by jotting notes, doodling, or pouring out our thoughts and feelings onto paper. Writing things down empowers us and makes the vague immensities more doable and less threatening. If you keep a journal or notebook, you can look back and see what progress you’ve made and learn from your own growth that may not be obvious to you at the time.

Creating thinking time and writing time and time for being are some of the most important things we as humans can do.

So how about you? How do you solve this near-universal dilemma of balancing work and creating thinking time and writing time? I’d love to hear your comments, your solutions, and creative ideas.

The wild flowers along the roadways were essentially the same as ours here in the central part of the state, with other varieties I want to look up in my guidebook (which I also left behind along with the stress).

The tall blue chicory, the taller Queen Anne’s lace, and red clover bloomed everywhere, along with the majestic mullein with the yellow blossoms and many other flowers whose names I don’t know. 

An sudden opening at work, and I quickly threw my few necessaries into a small bag. A cell phone for emergencies, but no computer, even though my laptop and I are one, or that’s how it seems. A pen and paper journal more than sufficed. Of course the beloved little Moleskine squatted by my side, ready to spring open to capture thoughts, ideas, and nature notes.

Such a relaxing time, with all work-related issues sponged from my mind. Not a care in the world, and “the golden girls,” as we now call ourselves, filled up on sushi, Baroque music and singing, naps, fast and furious chess games, the telling of old and new stories, and inside family jokes.

A few days of laughter and a change of pace do wonders for my already sanguine outlook on life. The often sad and desperate stories I catch moved to a faraway place.

Back to work into a new ”need it yesterday” request with no sense of rush or frantic writing. I was able to move calmly through the day as I swim: slowly, relaxed, barely making a ripple to disturb the water.

The calm and serenity were a balm to the soul, and being with family always nourishes my heart. Let’s see how long I can maintain this wonderful quiet space and continue to live from the secret and peaceful gardens within.

Make a space and the peace will come.

Writing awaits, and I want to finish some work before I play. I did pick thyme, sage, and rosemary for tonight’s as yet unknown dinner. Lentil soup perhaps. I think of Virginia Woolf’s diary: “One acquires a certain power over sausages and haddock in writing their names.”

Curious relationship between writing and planning dinner (or the future). Time and thyme.

I like the rhythm of writing and cooking, writing and sorting papers, writing and soaking up the fresh breeze, writing and living. I think of my “inner critic” at work in the kitchen while I’m at the computer. After I’m finished, she can come back to edit, and I’ll go to the kitchen or the clover.

A simple kitchen timer has helped me balance my work and playing life. When I have deadlines and stacks of work to be done, I set the timer for 40 minutes (more or less). The ticking helps me focus, tells my brain it’s time to think. Recent research suggests that the brain works better with regular refreshment.

When the buzzer rings, I stop where I am and play for 20 minutes (or more). It’s like recess at elementary school. Those sacred minutes remind me of all the wonderful people, things, and animals in my life and how much I enjoy them.

Play might consist of a snack, sorting books, jotting down ideas or journaling with color, simply sitting on the deck, pulling a few weeds, or simply closing my eyes for a nap-ette.

Then back to work refreshed, and not feeling that I’m chained to the computer. I can work long hours that way, if need be. And the kitchen timer has taught me another trick:

If there’s an overwhelming task or something I’m dreading, I set the timer for five or ten minutes. Most of us can do almost anything for just a few minutes. At the sound of the buzzer, I’m liberated, but the amazing thing is that often I don’t want to stop, so I’m able to accomplish much more than I had planned.

I thought I would pass along these tips as I’m getting ready to send out a little tips newsletter called “New Life Story Seeds.” If you’ve already suscribed, you’ll be getting them soon. If you’re not, you can sign up in the upper right-hand corner on the blog.

Wishing you all the time and thyme you’d like to savor in your life.