Intention

I haven't actually sat down yet and put plainly into words or thoughts what exactly Intent means to me for 2008.
I've thought of it fleetingly - and am already considering it in a few of my actions, but I haven't gotten really clear in my head what I hope to gain, or where it may lead me.
Thus - here I am today when I have lots of quiet time to think about it. (Aaaah - eight hours of almost completely uninterruped computer time. How lovely. Which is pretty much the real reason I have this one-day-a-week job.)

This week I spent loads of my time cleaning.
Getting rid of debris.
Decluttering.
Organizing.
Purefying.
The mail.
The fridge.
The oven.
The children's bedrooms have been tended to at least once daily (organized, dusted, vacuumed).
The laundry piles have been tended to.
The computers are organized and running efficiently and correctly.
All but one room in my home has been tended to completely and totally. Halls, drawers, most of the closets, stairway, my room.
Aaah - my room - yesterday I had the joy of tending to that one - giving it a thorough once over - it sparkles even more, now.... sigh...
Where was I?
Oh yeah - cleaning.

Part of my intent.
Sort of a physical way to straighten out my head.
It has two parts - one is the "Begin as you intend to go on," facet - ie start fresh and clean and clear, and the second is of course to just be rid of the muck. The old dirt. Clearing out the cobwebs. Both literally and figuratively, of course.

A huge part of my Intent for this year involves mindfulness. Which of course means being present in all my interactions with my children. It means tempering my reactions. It means not parenting on automatic pilot. It means thinking and feeling peace, and coming from that space with love instead of reacting from old patterns.
A biggy, to be sure.

Another bit of Intent for me means doing things physically to help me to remember what it is that I intend to bring into my life. Spending time in my room. Meditating. Thinking, writing, whispering, fiddling, all of the things that I like to do in a quiet corner of my home that I have claimed just for myself - a sacred space.

Another part of my intent is to be more aware. Aware of what I am doing (and not excuse my carelessness as "I am in a hurry", or "I am doing the best I can", or showing my opened palm that contains a few meager skills and saying "This is all I've got at the moment".) Be Aware of where my thoughts and actions take me. Aware of causes and effect. (Which I'm usually pretty good at.) I would also really like to be more aware of my Authentic Self - and the whisperings of my spirit. And certainly I'd like to be more aware of the magic that is my life - synchronicity, abundance, love, blessings, et cetera. And lastly I'd like to be more aware of my intuition.

I guess what it boils down to, for me, is that I already know that I am in charge of my life. I create my life and my circumstances moment by moment. With my thoughts. With my actions. With my words.
What I Intend - what I would like to do - is be more keenly aware of doing it. Instead of a more passive "I have created this -- now how did it come about, again?" I'd like to be more sure of every little detail - and notice the results the universe offers back to me in a more sure way.

I suspect that by living this way, and practicing these things, I shall not only learn a great deal about how to better represent myself and Who I Want To Be, but I shall also be better equipped to move myself into a deeper understanding and acknowledgment of what exactly that means.
And once I master that one - who knows - maybe my word for next year can be "Create"?

Sounds like a good idea to me....
How fun - I'll just zip and zap things all over the place...
:)
Blessed Be.