Category Archives: Patti Digh

Q is for Question

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image by f/oxymoron

I love a question’s sense of curiosity, its longing to connect and understand, even its doubt, and it’s ability to prompt a response. Even if it’s a question you refuse to answer out loud, even if its asking offends you, you find yourself thinking about it, pondering, wondering, and maybe, eventually, arriving at knowing.

  • an expression of inquiry that invites or calls for a reply; an interrogative sentence, phrase, or gesture
  • to seek, ask, inquire, quiz, query, examine
  • a subject or point open to controversy; an unsettled issue; a point or subject under discussion or being considered; a difficult matter or problem
  • uncertainty, possibility, a feeling or expression of doubt about the truth or validity of something, not knowing

A life coach once told me that the essence of coaching was knowing the right questions to ask, gently guiding clients to their own truth, allowing them to investigate, consider, and arrive at an authentic answer, a personal realization, deep knowing.


image by f/oxymoron

And you, when will you begin that long journey into yourself? ~Rumi

Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
~Mary Oliver, The Summer Day

What are you truly hungry for? ~Rachel Cole

What do you long to say with your life? ~Patti Digh

Why am I here? What is my purpose? What is the meaning of all this? ~Every Human Who Has Ever Lived

How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? ~The Kid in That Commercial

 

Danielle LaPorte’s The Burning Question Series: She says, “Generally, I think people should ask more questions. Of themselves. Of each other. Questions are doorways that lead to higher consciousness…or pop culture trivia. Both are good.”

Writing for me is the process of asking questions and searching for answers.

I ask the birds where to find joy, and expect them to know because of their understanding of song and flight.

I ask the fish “how’s the water?” but their only answer is “what’s water?”

Sometimes, the questions are new, different, and unfamiliar. Other times, it’s the same old question, again and again, over and over, never an answer.

image by walknboston

It’s good to be curious, but at times, it’s also good to be silent, to ask for nothing, to be content, where you are, as you are, with reality just as it is. For me, meditation is an opportunity to listen for answers. And when there are no answers, I sit, still and quiet, with the vast, unconditional silence and space that is beyond questions and their answers.

Wishcasting Wednesday

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image from Jamie's post

What do you wish to experience?

Contentment. Satisfaction and peace, surrender and acceptance, ease and relaxation, fearlessness and joy, simplicity and engagement.

Love. On every channel, all the time, 24/7. Know it, feel it, be it. Love, love, love. And then, more love. Keep it coming, keep it going.

Health. Full body and full life wholehearted and embodied wellness. I want to light up, shine with it, glow, radiate.

Confidence. Certainty, courage, daring, determination, faith, tenacity.

Self-love. This is most likely a combination or culmination of the rest, what is at the center, the heart of everything else, its foundation, but it seems to be worth an independent mention. I want to move through the hours and days of my life with supreme confidence in my innate wisdom, compassion, strength, and fundamental goodness.

That part of the list is states of being, but there are also “things” I wish to experience.

Playing the ukulele well enough that I wouldn’t embarrass myself. The secret wish underneath is to someday be able to do a duet with Danielle Ate the Sandwich. Just once, please. But I have a lot of work to do first, like learning to play.

Publication. I’m okay without it. I have a full writing life, even if it never happens. Writing is like prayer for me, a spiritual practice, and I am utterly devoted to it. But…I’d also like to be published, as in paid for my work, as in people curled up in hammocks or in front of a fire on the couch cuddling with their dog reading my books.

Paid work that isn’t work, but rather pure love, aligned with my calling, maybe even God’s work. I’ve said it before and it bears repeating that I don’t need what I love to pay my rent, or turn into a business, and yet…it might not be the worst thing if what I love, the work I would do regardless, the thing that wakes me up in the middle of the night thinking and planning, the stuff that makes me wake up and rise at 4:30 am every morning, and the money, the means to take care of what needs taken care of, would be in the same location at the same time, would feed each other, work together, and then I could just do what I love, all the time, instead of trying to juggle full-time paid work with everything else I want to do. It is sometimes like trying to live two lives, and that can be exhausting, and lonely.

Hike the Appalachian Trail with Eric.

My very own writing cabin.

A whole summer in Amsterdam.

Dathun, a month long meditation retreat at Shambhala Mountain Center.

An in-person workshop with Brene’ Brown.

P.S. The magic power of wishing, part two: Holy wow! Brene’ is going to be in Boulder for a two day workshop in May, and I am going.

A yoga retreat with my friend and yoga teacher Jessica.

A writing workshop with Natalie Goldberg.

Church with Anne Lamott.

A meet-up with Susannah Conway. Really, what I would love is a long weekend on the beach with her, writing and blogging and taking pictures and talking and taking long naps and eating and laughing.

P.S. The magic power of wishing: I just found out this morning, less than 24 hours after making this post, that Susannah is going to be at the World Domination Summit, and has proposed a writing workshop. Even if the workshop doesn’t go (it so will), there is a very real chance that I am going to be able to at least tell her in person how much I adore her. I can hardly believe it, but it’s true!

Walk and talk with Mary Oliver. This is most likely the craziest wish on this list, but I would just love to be near her and able to tell her just once in-person how much I love her, how much her words have meant to me.

Swim without fear.

Hike with Judy Clement Wall.
A walk on the beach with Julia.
Take pictures or paint with Andrea Scher.
Sit with Jen Lemen at her kitchen table.
Sit in stillness with Erica Staab.
Meditate with Susan Piver, (oh wait, I actually get to do this in a few weeks!).
Discuss writing with Margaret Atwood, and not embarrass myself.
Trust over a cup of tea with Kristin Noelle.
Make art with Patti Digh.
Take a yoga class with Jennifer Louden.
Ask Pema Chödrön one million questions.
Take a Nia class with Jamie Ridler.
Go on tour with Aimee Mann.
Teach an art and writing class for girls with Kandyce.
Draw with Hugh MacLeod.
Listen to Neil Gaiman read.

I could keep going with this list forever and ever…so many good people doing so much good stuff and I want to just hang out with them and soak up all that goodness and tell them to their sweet faces how much I adore them.