Moving Forward with Intention

 

Intention – what does this mean to you? As I thought about the word intention, I thought of purpose; or, to do something with meaning. When I looked up the word intention, the definition online indicated purpose, aim, target or goal.

 But look at the medical term for intention: the healing process of a wound.

 Friends, think about everything we’ve been through this past year. I could not agree more, that a wound offers an appropriate analogy. And as we move through the next steps of healing, as people become vaccinated, and as the world begins to open up, we must be intentional about how we heal. Moving forward with intention, using this metaphor, means to begin the healing process of tending to a wound.

I don’t know about you, but this year ripped open so many of us. What are your wounds and how will you heal? And what do you not want to return to? What might you do to protect yourself from further wounds? To truly continue to heal?

Here are things I think about and reflection questions I have for you too:

  • Why have I been grocery shopping for so long? What mom doesn’t love “click lists”? Did this change your lives?
  • I have NOT missed running around like a mad woman to every practice, appointment, game, and meeting. But I do miss seeing my kids participate in sports and activities. HOW can we figure this out as parents? HOW can we be less crazed but still active?
  • We CAN be efficient on virtual meetings. But I can’t be disconnected from colleagues. Have you been more or less happy working from home?
  • The people who I’ve been able to connect with on a virtual platform, from all over the world will not soon be given up. Accessibility, connection and community have been deepened in ways that I do not want to surrender. In what ways have you made connections in new ways?
  • I love time with my kids. There will likely be no other time in my children’s lives that I get to connect with them in this way. They’re literally trapped with me! And they make me crazy. What have you learned about your kids this year?
  • My kids can cook and figure out a lot more on their own than I give them credit for – how about yours?
  • I love the people who live in my house. They’re everything to me. What have you realized about your family?

So, when I think about intention and healing the wound over the past year, these are questions I’m reflecting upon. And I want you to do the same. Make your list. Ask questions. Talk with your family about what feels meaningful to all of you and how you want to re-enter this world.

Let’s heal wounds with intention.

Thinking of all of you with compassion,