I love this so much. I ALSO love a list (Pisces daughter of a triple Libra) but lately I notice my addiction to the lists and the promise of absolution that they hold for me. If I do all the things on the list, surely I will have the life I want -- and yet, so many of the things I truly yearn for are outside my control. No amount of list-making will bring them to me. I also relate to the prep thing in that... while I was raised without any idea of the Apocalypse, I found New Age cult spirituality in my 20's and fell in love with the ideas UNTIL I realized how deeply enmeshed many of the paradigms were with Evangelical Christianity and the "white light" we were ushering in 1) was white and 2) tied to a vision of the Hereafter that bore an uncanny resemblance to the Heaven you describe, the Rapture. Anyway, I also appreciate that you are one of the few writers on the platform not selling me anything. Thanks for sharing a vision that doesn't automatically lead to a sales pitch. Oh and also I love your books :)
Pisces with an Anxiety rising here. Yes. The Outer list maker and task ticker-offer knows for sure that there will always be more things needing done.
As Buddha said: you always think you have enough time.
Attending to my soul or whatever we want to call it ( I prefer consciousness; soul has connotations of childhood Catholicism aka the Permanently Besmirched Soul of Original Sin ) is a glorious vocation. Feeding, watering, attending to the matter of open and aware consciousness is my life’s purpose. The rest is just a tick list.
These are extraordinary times. Step beyond the narrative, the spooling newsfeed, the endless futile engagement with the tumult of geopolitical affairs and find the quiet place in the centre. This too will pass. This too will pass.
Jeanette, if prepping the soul is like playing piano, then my inner Steinway’s a bit dusty ... but thank goodness for beautiful books, imagination, daydreams and the occasional rage-fuelled journal entry. Myself, I’m stocking up on metaphors, myths and boxes of peppermint tea and I promise: this Virgo moon won’t be running out of quiet rebellion anytime soon.
Soul-prepped and side-eyed ... let’s go! Great post, as always, thanks so much for sharing.
First, I love all of your books. Why Be Happy invited me further into my own inner prep shelter that I had always known, but not named. You have gift for finding humor in the awful and that is worth a cellar full of jars filled with strange beans sprouting eyes.
I still have nightmares about the prepping we did as a US Army dependent family in Germany during the early 60's, driving slowly through the back roads to get to Frankfurt, where an airport awaited us. Our little car was packed with gas masks, prepared canned food, and a change of clothing, plus our important papers in a lock box. I don't want my grandchildren to live in such times.
Jeanette, I’ve gobbled up your writing over the years, ingesting it like it was fresh bread. It’s always felt ‘right’ to me. And now I read that you too are a Virgo. An ‘ah ha’ moment that’s made my day.
Thank you for your words. Having watched Adam Curtis’ ‘Shifty’ on BBC iPlayer I’ve been left in some despair. Part of his premise is that politicians no longer wield power, power is in the hands of finance and tech with individuals free of any political ideology exercising power. Where there is no ideology, people seek alternatives to fill the void, hence we are in chaos where violence finds a target, any target, but the old ones are still the favourites. Prepping the soul is difficult in these times but essential if we are to push forward into a better world. Meanwhile, I fed my soul at a Will Todd singing day where he led us in his Mass in Blue. For a few hours I was free to imagine.
I love this so much. I ALSO love a list (Pisces daughter of a triple Libra) but lately I notice my addiction to the lists and the promise of absolution that they hold for me. If I do all the things on the list, surely I will have the life I want -- and yet, so many of the things I truly yearn for are outside my control. No amount of list-making will bring them to me. I also relate to the prep thing in that... while I was raised without any idea of the Apocalypse, I found New Age cult spirituality in my 20's and fell in love with the ideas UNTIL I realized how deeply enmeshed many of the paradigms were with Evangelical Christianity and the "white light" we were ushering in 1) was white and 2) tied to a vision of the Hereafter that bore an uncanny resemblance to the Heaven you describe, the Rapture. Anyway, I also appreciate that you are one of the few writers on the platform not selling me anything. Thanks for sharing a vision that doesn't automatically lead to a sales pitch. Oh and also I love your books :)
Brooke I resonate with your comments about the “white light”.
And just think what would happen if all the men in charge did their own soul prepping.
You have to have a soul to soul-prep 😕
If only…
If they did, They would never desire to be in charge.
Pisces with an Anxiety rising here. Yes. The Outer list maker and task ticker-offer knows for sure that there will always be more things needing done.
As Buddha said: you always think you have enough time.
Attending to my soul or whatever we want to call it ( I prefer consciousness; soul has connotations of childhood Catholicism aka the Permanently Besmirched Soul of Original Sin ) is a glorious vocation. Feeding, watering, attending to the matter of open and aware consciousness is my life’s purpose. The rest is just a tick list.
These are extraordinary times. Step beyond the narrative, the spooling newsfeed, the endless futile engagement with the tumult of geopolitical affairs and find the quiet place in the centre. This too will pass. This too will pass.
Jeanette, if prepping the soul is like playing piano, then my inner Steinway’s a bit dusty ... but thank goodness for beautiful books, imagination, daydreams and the occasional rage-fuelled journal entry. Myself, I’m stocking up on metaphors, myths and boxes of peppermint tea and I promise: this Virgo moon won’t be running out of quiet rebellion anytime soon.
Soul-prepped and side-eyed ... let’s go! Great post, as always, thanks so much for sharing.
Inspiring my love of getting back into eating books like I did for decades...
First, I love all of your books. Why Be Happy invited me further into my own inner prep shelter that I had always known, but not named. You have gift for finding humor in the awful and that is worth a cellar full of jars filled with strange beans sprouting eyes.
I still have nightmares about the prepping we did as a US Army dependent family in Germany during the early 60's, driving slowly through the back roads to get to Frankfurt, where an airport awaited us. Our little car was packed with gas masks, prepared canned food, and a change of clothing, plus our important papers in a lock box. I don't want my grandchildren to live in such times.
Jeanette, I’ve gobbled up your writing over the years, ingesting it like it was fresh bread. It’s always felt ‘right’ to me. And now I read that you too are a Virgo. An ‘ah ha’ moment that’s made my day.
♥️
So wonderful! Can feel myself settling back in to my body, these words allowed me to breathe deeply. Thanks
Thank you for this Jeanette, it is exactly what I needed to read today 💚
Thank you, Jeanette. ❤️
Thanks again Jeanette for comforting words of wisdom in a crazy world. Soul prepping through literature, art and gardening is my focus
Thank you for your words. Having watched Adam Curtis’ ‘Shifty’ on BBC iPlayer I’ve been left in some despair. Part of his premise is that politicians no longer wield power, power is in the hands of finance and tech with individuals free of any political ideology exercising power. Where there is no ideology, people seek alternatives to fill the void, hence we are in chaos where violence finds a target, any target, but the old ones are still the favourites. Prepping the soul is difficult in these times but essential if we are to push forward into a better world. Meanwhile, I fed my soul at a Will Todd singing day where he led us in his Mass in Blue. For a few hours I was free to imagine.
This is a beautiful piece of writing. Thankyou for sharing. ❤️
A balm to my soul—thank you