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Monastery Musings: Direction

If you missed the May Monastery blog about DREAMS, click HERE.

I recently made an interesting connection between my clients putting off getting professional assistance and my own recognizing that it could be helpful.

In my last blog newsletter, I shared that I am a prolific nighttime dreamer.  The first night at my Erie hermitage retreat, I recorded five of them and a record 17 pages in my dollar store fat book. The first four were unsettling, so I requested a positive, meaningful one. Dream #5: When I couldn’t get to the library from where I was despite seeing the escalator to it, someone gave me confusing directions, then walked me there; we went to another building, diagonally across sand to a hidden stairway below-ground entrance. 

I woke up with the thought ‘I would have never found that on my own!”

So, I decided I would inquire about the spiritual direction resource available through the monastery. How odd I’ve not done that before.

My career counseling clients often come in with stacks of questionable quizzes, lists of books they read, and stories of the Internet rabbit hole. Their minds are still swirling, and no decisions made. 

I often say we’re not born knowing how to make good career decisions, just like we’re not born knowing how to make good financial decisions. We can educate ourselves, but sometimes an outside professional perspective can help.

So this career counselor will take her own advice and that of her dream messages.  In terms of career direction, THAT I can help with. I could do it in my sleep…but won’t.

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What are your dreams?

After settling in at my hermitage retreat in Erie this weekend, I picked a book out of my pile that filled half of my suitcase. I decided to begin with The Art of Life since it was written by Joan Chittister, a Benedictine nun from this monastery.

When I opened it to the May chapter, my heart quickened when I saw the theme of the chapter: DREAMS. First, I thought, “What a great topic for a career blog.” Then I asked, “Do I dream?”

I regularly ask my clients “What’s your dream job?”  If that’s too hard, then “How would you like to spend your time if you won the lottery?” I go on to say that if you don’t allow yourself to think about the ideal, give it space, then it’s not likely to happen.  Perhaps it can give a clue to a job direction or retirement idea.  Or maybe it reminds about taking time for something enjoyable, including renewing an interest from the past.

Here are a few excerpts from the book:

“Dreams are the lifeblood of becoming.”
“Dreams are destinations toward which we bend out lives, not possibilities unfulfilled.”
“The difficulty of dreams is if we suppress them, we may live to regret the present.”
“The truth is it is the goals we nurture within us that determine the eventual quality of our lives.”
“Dream big, but realize that every great hope is achieved one small step at a time along the way.”

The Art of Life, Joan Chittister

Back to my question: Do I dream? I asked it because I think I don’t as a left-brain, busy type.  I not only don’t take the time, but my mind doesn’t operate that way. For Myer-Briggs aficionado’s, despite being a counselor, I score higher on Sensing (concrete) not Intuition (more imagination).

I actually have a prolific nighttime dream life, sometimes with guidance and premonitions. Because I am so left-brain, insight best comes through the sleeping subconscious. When I have taken time to daytime dream, I’ve made audio recordings of visualizations, and found years later I was living my dreams.

Knowing my nature, I need to remove myself from daily life to give space for the unfolding of intuition, messages and dreams.  So here I am at my favorite retreat site signing off from this handwritten blog, to perhaps dream. 

I invite you to take some time to dream too.

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