9) Provident Living Series #4: Holistic life organisation-Connecting the Dots

By Sindy Wakeham

If I could just gut and clear out the house, there would be more order and less stress and chaos.

If I could just get my finances in order, I could actually save and have some left for focusing on the house.

If I could just loose the weight, I would have more energy, feel better and be healthier.

If I could just sleep at night, I’d have more energy, lose the weight, be healthier and be able to do all that I’m supposed to.

If I could just get this or that job.....If could just have this or that bit of equipment, my videos and social media posts will be perfect and make me money...

Sound familiar? You get it. I could go on.

If you’ve been following my Blue Garden Cottage YouTube channel, you’ll know how for years, hubby and I’ve been trying to put home, finances, health, garden and spirituality in order. We make a start and something happens to halt or stall efforts. That’s not always a bad thing. Sometimes it’s because the choices we made might not be the best ones (not necessarily bad ones). Sometimes the halt comes because life happens, and sometimes because there’s something we are missing.

I’ve always known that putting the house, finances, health, garden and spirituality are important and all needed attention in our home. I’ve tried to tackle each thing but not progressed far. I've mentioned prioritising before in my blog on putting first things first.

I already explained that I felt none of it would progress until I put 1^st things 1^st and put all of the above in order. I used to feel an urgency driving my efforts and frustration when things didn’t work out. Why couldn’t I just get it right?!

Since the end of 2023 I have been getting more focussed, intentional, planned and active in getting things started and ticking off the list. Felt good, until another brick wall as mentioned.

I figured that the top of the list of 1^st things 1^st needs to be spiritual. As I pondered and meditated on my faith, scriptures came to mind as I prayed. I was filled with inspiration.  

Yes, I’m a person of faith so I don’t know how I have forgotten the basics...oh yes, getting too busy putting things in order, that's how.

For transparency, I’ve mentioned before that I’m a Christian and strive to daily read, study scriptures, ponder, pray and meditate. Strive is the key word...My faith is my foundation and I do almost daily receive inspiration and guidance in my life.  It doesn’t make me perfect or all wise. I can’t claim to be perfect at any of the above either.  It’s my foundation for the day though, and you would think that doing so, I would have licked this 1^st things 1^st ambition.

Like I said, charging at tasks like a whirlwind and things look worse after than before! Sometimes you have to stop, take a step back, sit down and reset; I've been doing that for some time. I have holistic health qualifications in reflexology and Swedish massage therapy. I also have a Permaculture Design Certificate.

For those who don’t know, Permaculture is a design ethos working with nature and using natural patterns and associations to inform how we design and live. It IS in fact a holistic approach to designing not just outside spaces or farming in a natural way but ourselves, homes, jobs, communities, city and town planning, architecture too and the list goes on. 

Holistic means looking at everything as a whole and connecting the dots, that one thing is connected to more than just one other thing. A holistic approach to whole lifestyle is familiar to me and has always been a logical thing in my head.

I think I just got too busy and life 'got in the way'. I'm glad I've reset now and am well in progress now. Reset will come frequently to make sure I'm still on track for my goals. This time, I’m remembering that everything I do has a connection and effect on another.

Remember those old sayings like, ‘Healthy body, healthy mind’ and ‘you are what you eat’? What about, ‘a well organised home is a sign of a well organised mind’ and ‘If you organise your life around your dreams, you’ll see them come true’?

Tell you what; in 2023 I came across Marisa Peer (https://www.youtube.com/@MarisaPeer) on YouTube. Now she IS a professional qualified to council and gives guidance. It was amazing to hear her talk about the many things I have learned over my life that in general were good things. Things that have been universal truths long before humans decided to coin them but Marisa helped me connect those dots and she explained the rules of the mind.

I’m just summarising them as I wrote them down. If you want to hear them more accurately, the link is above if reading this, or in the description/notes box underneath if listening on BuzzSprout or on YouTube. I’d be surprised if you haven’t already heard of her.

Anyway, the mind rules she shares as I wrote them down but I’m not claiming 100% accurate.

1. ·       Every thought you think is a blueprint your mind and body work to make real.
2. ·       The mind can’t hold conflicting ideas and beliefs.
3. ·      The strongest force in all of us is that we must act in a way that completely matches up with how we have chosen or want to identify ourselves (so if we want to be healthy, live like healthy people do and do what they do).
4. ·       The mind loves what’s familiar and comfortable.
5. ·       Repetition is the mother of all skills.

·    "The subconscious mind is the feeling and feeding mind. It’s running the show all the time so every thought you think has a physical reaction in the body and an emotional response". (Marisa Peer)

That’s for sure! Especially that last one. Have you ever thought of a favourite food you are just longing for and just thinking about it makes your mouth water and you can actually smell or taste it? Oh, I have! I used to say, “I can LOOK at food and pile on the pounds”. Guess what, that’s exactly what happened...ok, so obviously I ate the food too. That’s because in my experience actions follow thoughts so watch your thoughts. The point remains, think a thought and you are more likely to follow through with actions that can make that thought a reality.

What is it you really, really want? Can you imagine as a reality? Can you imagine it so vividly that you can taste, smell, see and feel it with your eyes closed? Then you can make it a reality by living as if you already have it and do all you can to make it so. That’s how dreams are made reality after all.

Those rules of the mind Marisa shared really connected the dots for me. They brought me back to my big WHY. I went back to the basics to figure out what the conflicting ideas and thoughts were that were blocking my progress.

What does your basics and big WHY look like?

As I pondered my life and goals, familiar scriptures filled my head.

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God...

“Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto thee”.

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and He shall direct thy paths”.

“In all thy ways, acknowledge Him and he will direct...

Well, I got the message. Understanding the rules of the mind and remembering my WHY? I have turned around and redirected. Things are falling into place in my head and I'm making progress in organising again. The blockages are unblocked. I'm again putting first things first, connecting them all and am back on track.

Onwards and Upwards Now. Let’s see how far this goes. Next time, as part of the Provident Living series, I'll be sharing my thoughts on  health and wellness. I'll be looking at how in 2024 with all the election spin, historic agendas as far as our NHS goes, how we can take control of our health and wellness and 'prepare' appropriately for a rough time ahead.

Glorious Food!