Mindful Mondays #27: Beltane Edition
Life decisions, commitment vs. novelty, dreams, & the spiritual imagination
Good morning, and welcome to Mindful Mondays! Chelsea and I just got back from a wonderful trip to the mountains over this weekend, as you can see in the photo above.
Today is May 1st, also known as Beltane, a traditional May Day festival celebrated by historical Gaels and modern neopagans. Happy Beltane to those who celebrate today, and happy May to all.
This week’s newsletter will be a short read, as I’ve been pouring my longer-form writing into essays like the one you received last Wednesday. For the next few weeks, this is going to be the format: short excerpts and links on Mondays, longer-form essays on Wednesdays. You can let me know what you think of this experiment by replying to this email or leaving a comment on Substack.
In case you missed my latest essay, here’s a quick excerpt:
Why I Became a Psychotherapist
I think when people ask me why I became a therapist, they expect me to say something like “I wanted to help people.” But that would only be part of the truth.
The truth is, like most major life decisions, becoming a therapist was a compromise between disparate parts of myself, and while compassion or altruism played a role in that complicated psychic negotiation, I was also working out a way to meet my own deep-seated needs. Let me explain.
I was twenty years old. I had just returned from a three month trip to India, which I’d spent staying in ashrams, visiting temples and holy sites, drinking chai, and writing in my journal. Back at college in northern California, I found myself at loose ends.
By the way, did you know you can save articles to read later using a stylish, convenient app? All the cool kids are doing it. My current favorite is Instapaper (not an affiliate link). And yes, you’ll like it way more than just using bookmarks in your browser.
Article of Interest
Find Novelty Through Commitment: This article from Isabel of
is a great reframe for those who, like me, struggle with Shiny Object Syndrome. Isabel argues that rather than reducing novelty (and, I would add, opportunities for curiosity and deep learning), commitment actually delivers on what optionality only promises:“I’ve noticed that most people who struggle with commitment seem to think that it represents the death of novelty, optionality, and expansiveness. That when you commit, you stop trying new things—you cease to explore. But the secret about commitment is: it offers everything that optionality promises, but with more depth and dimension.”
This insight could be applied to relationships, hobbies, entrepreneurship, and even spiritual paths.
Podcast of the Week
Dreams and the Spiritual Imagination with Steve Aizenstat: If you read my essay Why I Became a Psychotherapist, you may have been intrigued by the Dreamtending work of Dr. Steven Aizenstat. Steve is a psychologist and the founding president of Pacifica Graduate Institute, where I received my M.A. His approach to working with dreams is a powerful one, treating dreams not as texts to be analyzed, but as living images to be related to. This interview is a great introduction to his work.
Quote of the Week
"Think for yourself, not of yourself. Think of others, not for others."
—Naval Ravikant
That’s all for this week! As always, I appreciate your feedback on Mindful Mondays. What was your favorite thing I shared this week? What would you like to read more about? Just reply to this email or leave a comment on Substack or Notes to let me know.
Thanks for reading,
Chris Cordry, LMFT
PS: How are you doing with your goals for 2023? If you feel like you could use a reset, I have room in my schedule to work with one more person in 1:1 coaching. Just reply to this email to let me know if you’re interested.
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