My meditations usually begin with Deepak Chopra’s “Four Questions for the Soul” which I wrote about in a post titled “Questions for Your Soul”. I have a pretty good idea of who I am, and my gratitude list is endless. My deepest desire?…good health, love, happiness, surrounded by true friends and family…you get the picture. But what IS my purpose? It seems like such a big question, one I thought I knew. And might still if I take a deep dive to focus on it. Do you have an identifiable purpose for your life?
Who am I?
What is my deepest desire?
What is my purpose?
What am I grateful for?
Past Purpose…
Having a sense of purpose can make life more meaningful, richer, deeper. But I believe our purpose changes over the years. For example, raising a healthy, happy, well-adjusted son was my purpose for many years. When he spread his wings and left for college, I spread my wings too and started a new purpose…learning about the stock market and investing.
Realizing how little I knew and wanting to learn more, I invited a few friends to join me in a women’s investment club. For about ten years we called ourselves “Diamonds in the Rough Investment Club” and in the beginning, we were! But we grew, stretched our minds and educated ourselves about what to look for when buying a stock. We rocked! One of the club members and I even developed a board game called “Take Stock” which we had produced and marketed for a number of years.
WHAT’S NEXT?
After the tech bubble crash in 2000, the stock market wasn’t as much fun, so our group transitioned to an “Action & Adventure Club” which was really just a fun excuse to get together, eat and drink a little wine. I also stepped away from the board game business to go back to college and finish up my bachelors degree in Criminal Justice and Sociology. I found a new purpose along the way, helping troubled kids as a Juvenile Probation Counselor. While working at Juvenile Court my purpose was clear: Give the kids I supervised everything I had to help them, help themselves, succeed. This career was fulfilling, also challenging, and filled my purpose to the brim!
And now I am happily retired. Writing this blog has brought a life changing purpose for me. It feeds my soul, creativity and hopefully helped a few people along the way. And yet…there is something else waiting in the wings. Another, different, new purpose. During meditation I’ve felt little snippets of something brewing. Of course, it has to fit into my more relaxed retirement lifestyle between the city and the coast….hmmmm. Stay tuned! 🐳
Some of my friends are living their purpose right now! 👩🦰👩🦱👵👩
- Kate just published a book she’s been working on for five years titled “Do You Have Kids? Life When the Answer is No”. It’s a fantastic read for those who don’t have kids and the friends or family with kids who love them . She has been traveling the country promoting her book, getting rave reviews and having the time of her life! I’m pretty sure Kate has found her purpose.😊
- Ann went from being a top tier Realtor to become an extremely successful writer and Life Coach for business leaders after moving to a new state and a new purpose. Ann is one of the most intuitive people I know who truly listens and asks just the right questions. She is highly sought after to help individuals achieve their goals and writes inspirational articles for newspapers and other periodicals. Check her out at: Golden Visions & Associates
- Kellie & Terri are Probation Counselors who have 64 years between them helping troubled children in the juvenile justice system. They each recognize what trauma does to our youth & work tirelessly to help kids build on their strengths. When I worked with these two at Juvenile Court, I witnessed how dedicated and purpose driven they were (& still are!). They both consistently go the extra mile for these kids and our community reaps the benefits.
Kate wrote this excellent article that’s helpful for many of us: “Purpose Without Kids: 3 Routes to Fulfillment For Non-Parents & Empty Nesters” for Conscious Connection Magazine. A couple of the routes to fulfillment she discusses are “Seek widely and taste freely” and to “Reflect on past satisfiers”. Kate suggests we sample and explore the buffet of possibilities for purpose and remember old passions or successes to see if they might fit again. I like that!
it’s your turn…
These women (& many others, including men) have phenomenal purposes in their lives. Their purpose may change, evolve and possibly find a whole new direction in life one day, like mine has. A purpose doesn’t need to be on a grand, change the world scale like what these women are doing, it’s more about what speaks to you and feeds your soul. We should all be purposeful about being kind to each other, nonjudgmental and do our part to keep our planet clean. Now it’s YOUR turn, how will you fulfill your life’s purpose?
Till next time…
Peace & Love, ❤
D’Alene
