A sticky note on the window in my Brooklyn apartment read:
With time, the sun faded the ink on the sticky note in the window. As the text faded, so too did my satisfaction with my New York life.
A perceived lack of personal advancement left me dissatisfied. To fill the gap, I latched on to the mitote. In his classic book, The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz describes mitote as the cacophony of outside world’s dreams that cloud our own truth.
Mitote led me to feel that I needed more money to raise my quality of life and thus make me happy. I began to feel that I should seek out a romantic relationship or an advanced degree to achieve what society has marketed to us as success. Actually, what I needed was to pursue my dream situation.
It was always my dream to live abroad. The pandemic deferred that dream, and instead led me to live in New York. While I enjoyed this for a while, perhaps I became dissatisfied because I was living my Plan B. Why not get back to Plan A?
So, I packed up my Brooklyn apartment and relocated to Mexico City. Here I’ve found a deep sense of gratitude and peace. I am immensely grateful that I can unpack gainful employment from my suitcase, or as my braider said, “Que puedes trabajar donde seas.” I can work steady hours to earn my income, then close the laptop to enjoy a vibrant international city.
My days now begin with sun, birdsong, and yoga. A few years ago, I reflected on what a day in my dream life would be like. I imagined myself waking up with nature. I would stretch, meditate, write, and prepare healthy food for myself and my family. Then, I would log into a virtual campus to work and learn. I now realize that my current life closely resembles that dream.
Of course, nothing is perfect. Sometimes making a healthy breakfast is undermined by my apartment’s water being off. Some mornings I might wake up on the wrong side of the bed because my washing machine is broken and the laundromat still hasn’t given me my clothes back. Sometimes I may fail to honor myself with fruitful habits of yoga, meditation, and writing. But, it’s all there. It’s all within my reach.
The job is the job. It’s not supposed to be a silver bullet to deliver your dream life. It’s only a fraction of that life, simply your way of making an income. So much of your situation is up to you to decide.
When your spirit rises and commands, the universe organizes itself around you. The path becomes clear once you begin walking. So do what you must to get the job in order, then set yourself about shaping the life you desire.
Though I sometimes get frustrated, I remind myself not to rush off and go find a new job simply because I want a promotion or more money. Don’t always be enamored with the next thing. Be present to enjoy the fruits of your labor because you put in work to get where you are.
Embrace your position. Take that fraction of life that the job represents and set it in place, then focus your energy upon the rest, the beautiful majority that is your true life. Control what you can control. Your dreams are within your reach.