15 - When the weather is Nice

A dose is there when the weather is Nice and you can run that extra mile

Transcript

Current Episode Introduction

This episode is informed by the verse of the poem representing the letter:

• N

• A dose is there when the weather is Nice and you can run that extra mile

It includes a brief description of the verse, a personal reflection demonstrating how the verse has facilitated my own resonance with Doses of God in my life, a statement of gratitude, and a few guiding questions that may be considered for your own reflection.

Description

Here is description of the verse:

• A dose is there when the weather is Nice and you can run that extra mile

• God provides us with ideal conditions to do good things for others and ourselves. When He gives us nice weather, we can take that opportunity to extend our run a little further than we originally planned. The extra mile could benefit our body, mind, and soul. Ideal conditions are not just in the form of weather, but can be provided to us in the form of time, inner confidence, or something completely different. We are responsible for identifying such conditions and the opportunities that accompany them. When He gives us a little extra time, we can take the opportunity to have a meaningful conversation with a significant other, a child, or a friend. Maybe the extra time will allow us to finish another chapter in a special book or provide us with an opportunity to help a neighbor or volunteer at a local charity. He may also provide us with an ideal condition of an enhanced confidence to follow our dreams. We must take advantage of the opportunities that are right for us because if we don’t, they might be gone forever.

Reflection

Here is my personal reflection on the verse:

• To me, this verse is about taking advantage of opportunities to spend additional time and energy on the pursuit of outcomes I desire. It’s about extending beyond the scope of my regular responsibilities or initial intentions when opportunities arise for me to put more work into gaining or sustaining what I want. For example, in the literal sense of the verse, if a person runs as a means to gain or sustain a desired state of physical fitness, acting on an opportunity to run an extra mile when the weather is nice would be likely to further support achievement of the fitness level they want.

• This verse has not quite been applicable to me in the literal sense of running. Although I have experienced moments when I wanted to become a runner and attempted to embed a running routine into my lifestyle on a few occasions, I have not been able to figure out how to run consistently in a way that doesn't inflict lasting and excruciating pain on my knees, hips, and lower back. Consequently, running has not been a sustainable exercise for me, at least through the current stage of my life, and I have thus found other activities less painful on my joints to support my physical fitness. Even though I do not see this verse applying to me through the literal lens of running, I am able to resonate with how its underlying meaning is embodied in different physical exercises I perform as well as other contexts in my life.

• Here are a few examples of how I have seen the essence of this verse surface in physical exercises I would typically perform to improve or maintain my bodily health:

  • On some days, I intend to complete one set of a short dumbbell routine in my home office at two different points during the day. Currently, my routine includes performing 10-15 reps of 7 continuous dumbbell exercises. Some days, I perform the routine more than two times if there is an alignment between my motivation to perform an extra set and conditions for me to perform an extra set, such as adequate time in my schedule, enough physical energy, and few distractions.

  • On some days, I intend to ride the elliptical in our basement for 30 minutes, and I extend the ride to 45 minutes if conditions, such as those in the previous example, merge with my motivation to continue exercising.

  • On some days, I intend to take our dogs for a walk along a regular route we have established, and I extend the walk by a few additional blocks if I am motivated to keep going and if conditions are favorable for continuing the walk. These conditions may include nice weather, available time, and desires of the dogs to go further than I initially planned.

• Here are a few examples of how I have seen the essence of this verse surface in other types of contexts of my life:

  • Our family wanted to achieve the outcome of decorating our house for Christmas. We put up our tree and a few decorations inside. We did not have intentions to decorate outside; however, due to the merger between a sudden motivation on a weekend afternoon and unseasonably warm weather, we decided to hang lights outside, which resulted in our house being more robustly decorated than we had originally planned.

  • I wanted to achieve the outcome of publishing a paper with a few friends and was working toward this goal as time allowed. I encountered an unanticipated opportunity to allocate extra time toward the project when my return flight from an out-of-state work conference was postponed for a couple days due to inclement weather. As a result, I was able to put extra efforts into writing our paper as I felt a motivation to work on the project, and my empty schedule along with extra alone time in a quiet hotel room were ample conditions for writing, which led to earlier completion of the paper.

  • In terms of writing for this project, I have a desire to achieve a better understanding of myself and my place in this world by creating a written reflection for each verse representing a letter of the alphabet in the poem, The ABCs of a Dose of God. I’ve had small inclinations to work on a project like this over the years, but the conditions did not feel quite right to seriously pursue it during those times. Lately, my motivation for working on this project has substantially intensified to such a point that it has been difficult to suppress or ignore, and it is aligning well with other conditions that allow me to put extra efforts toward the work. Such conditions include having spaces at home that are comfortable for writing, accessible tools on my phone and computer for jotting notes and organizing my thoughts, an array of personal and professional responsibilities that is manageable enough for me to maintain focus and have few or no distractions when I am writing, extra time that presents itself when I unintentionally wake up in the middle of the night with insights relevant to these reflections, and adequate mental and physical energy to contemplate and write in the middle of the night or early in the morning -- sometimes four or five hours before I would typically begin my normal work day for contractual tasks. Recognizing and acting on these conditions is helping facilitate the completion of the written reflections as well as my desired improvements in understanding myself and where I fit this world.

• These few examples illustrate how I have taken additional steps toward the realization of a desired state when I noticed there was an alignment between my motivation to achieve something and a context of conditions conducive for allocating extra efforts toward that purpose.

Gratitude Statement

I am immeasurably grateful for:

• being able to identify and act on conditions conducive for spending additional time and energy on activities that help me gain or sustain what I want and will attempt to remain aware of subsequent opportunities to allocate efforts toward initiatives that matter.

Guiding Questions

Here are a few guiding questions to consider that might facilitate your own personal reflection upon the verse:

• A dose is there when the weather is Nice and you can run that extra mile

Take a moment to reflect on:

• times when you have recognized and acted upon ideal conditions to put extra effort into something that facilitated your achievement of a desired state or goal, such as the enhanced well-being of yourself or others.

For example:

• What is an example of a time when you identified and acted upon ideal conditions for putting extra efforts into activities that promote the enhanced well-being of yourself or others?

• What were the ideal conditions that allowed you to implement the extra efforts?

• How did the process of acting on ideal conditions to further promote the enhanced well-being of yourself or others make you feel?

• In what ways do you express gratitude for ideal conditions that allow you to put extra effort into something that positively affects yourself or others?

• What strategies could you implement to maintain awareness of, and act on, ideal conditions to allocate extra efforts toward activities that benefit the well-being of yourself or others?

Closing Statement

In closing:

• when you run an extra mile during nice weather, or take advantage of other ideal conditions to improve yourself or others, you receive a Dose of God.

Next Episode

The next episode in this series will focus on the verse representing the letter:

• O

• It's there when you're on the Open road without another soul in sight.

Positive Vibes

Thank you so much for listening. May you consistently position yourself to accept and resonate with the Doses of God that are ever-presently here for you.