This will be my shortest blog post yet. I had a relatively busy week and opted to write about a quick read I have owned for over twenty-two years. It's an interesting one - very different, and I have mixed feelings about it. There are huge passages throughout the book that are not marked up at all, but, as with most self-help and mindfulness books, I could extract some value from The Invitation (by Oriah Mountain Dreamer). This value is related to mindfulness.

I attended a book club for a few years while living in Cape Town. There were eleven of us, and we'd each have a turn to host at our homes, where we'd make dinner, drink wine (not me, though), laugh, and talk books. We'd add our names to ensure we'd keep track of who the books belonged to. We also had a post-it note system, not unlike the old-school library one where we'd add a post-it note to the back of the book to keep track of who had read the text. It was a lot of fun while it lasted.
Most of the books we read were works of fiction - good books that were both contemporary and classic. I don't recall many self-help or motivational books amongst the huge pile that eventually grew, but I remember that I had contributed a version of the Kama Sutra at one point, too. It raised some giggles and no raised eyebrows or pearl clutching. I lost some of my books at book club, and the Kama Sutra was one of them, so I think it was a hit. Getting back on track, I bought The Invitation by Oriah Mountain Dreamer four months, one week and two days after my Dad passed away, so I was still grieving - longing for ways to heal the wound left by his untimely passing.

If you're unfamiliar with the book, The Invitation is based on a poem originally written in 1994 (the poem is freely available on the internet). Oriah Mountain Dreamer expands on the themes in her poem, weaving her personal stories, reflections and practical exercises into the work while encouraging readers to go beyond fear and superficiality to live a meaningful and authentic life. When I picked up the book again this week, I couldn't connect it to that period of grief and whether it helped me during the grieving process. Interestingly, I hadn't marked up the book as much as others but highlighted the following quote:
"There are no deals being offered here. You cannot trade the courage needed to live every moment for immunity from life's sorrows."
I wondered if the word "sorrow" resonated at the time, given I read the book so soon after my Dad's passing, but I can't be sure. Nevertheless, since death is an inevitability, I find meaning in the quote under my current circumstances and how I approach this self-help journey. No matter how mindful or present I may become, I will never be immune to life's vicissitudes, and this entire process that I am going through is not to seek immunity but to find the right medicine to help me through it. As I re-read the book this week, I highlighted much more than I did on my first read, which I think lends credence to the notion that books come to us when we're ready. Soon after her quote about sorrow, Oriah Mountain Dreamer tosses in a quintessentially mindful quote, one of the new ones I highlighted. She writes that:
"We know that what we do and how we think affect the quality of our lives. Many things are clearly up to us. And many others are not."
I've touched on this with almost every book covered during this blogging exercise. While sometimes communicated differently, they have essentially all been the same. There are a few other snippets of inspiration from The Invitation, but the above quote is all I will touch on in this post because it reminds me that this is where it begins for me. I need to break the habit of being an overthinker.
Oriah Mountain Dreamer also touches on hope and faith in her book. While it won't be on this side of the new year, I will touch on faith in a dedicated post at some stage. I have a complicated relationship with it and look forward to unpacking it.
What's Up Next Week?
It involves a four-letter word, so watch this space.
FOOTNOTE: Atomic Habit 6

This is an update on my social media use. In 2016, the world watched as one of its (so-called) super-powers voted a man into office who has no business running a country. In 2020, we thought we'd seen the back of him, but it wasn't to be. I have avoided social media for several weeks because I cannot bear to see hate triumph in the way that it did this past week. I touched on the link between excessive social media use and depression before and have read articles relating to its use as a coping mechanism. At this stage, and given the current political climate, I find that avoidance is my best coping mechanism. I began by stopping zombie scrolling in bed, but over the last couple of weeks, I have also reduced daytime social media use by a considerable amount. There is so much bad news around, so while I try to keep my finger on the pulse of what is happening in the world, I refuse to be drawn into it. The positive impact on my psyche is noticeable, and avoiding fear-mongering bigotry has taught me more about mindfulness.
#Anxiety #Depression #Mindfulness #Selfhelp #MentalHealthAwareness #MentalHealth #ThereIsNoStigma #YouAreNotAlone #TheInvitation
The Invitation is available to purchase at the link below.
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