What Does Your Life-lane Look Like?

It's early Saturday morning by the swake, and I am glad to be home.  The light is creeping over the tree line in the east casting a pink tinge on the world.  In the light I can see that the poplar trees are budding, just waiting for that one perfect day of warmth and sun before they unfurl their leaves in honor of the season.  Spring in Alberta is like a shot of adrenalin for the spirit. When you think you can't take another day of endless winter, spring pops in with a shot of hope to revitalize your soul. 

The snow in the ditches retreats leaving only the detritus of travellers, and although the litter discourages me the sight of neighbors cleaning the ditches gives me hope.  I admit to some self-righteousness in this regard, wondering what kind of miscreants toss their garbage out the window as they pass by.  Then I wonder if the sequence of events is a realistic metaphor for life.  

Every one of us receives the same number of days in a week to live, and we fill those days with events.  We make choices that either honor our lives and those in our lives or we make choices that leave garbage and junk strewn along our life-lane.  The more days I live the more convinced I am that it is critical to be intentional about the events and choices we make each day.  I struggle a bit with this because it requires one to intentionally measure and weigh the time and energy against the life reward.  

The simple act of mentally measuring and weighing life choices requires that we draw imaginary boundaries in all aspects of our lives.  We need to create and defend sacred spaces on our life-lanes without apology to anyone else whose inner drive consumes them.  You know the people I mean, the ones who go through so fast and with such intensity that their ambitions and hard edges fly out the window only to be strewn along your life-lane.  They denounce your boundaries and sacred spaces with commentary about mediocrity implying that your choices are less valuable than theirs.  The garbage they leave behind is uncertainty and insecurity.

When that happens get out your boots and gloves, head out into your life-lane equipped with a garbage bag and decide to enjoy the spring sunshine while you gather up the junk and restore beauty to your part of the world.  It kind of sucks to have to pick up after those people literally and figuratively, but it is worth it because it helps you to claim back your piece of life on your terms.  When you reclaim your life-lane you get a dose of hope.  Here's to a week of intentional living, spring-cleaning of your life-lane, and hope!

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