A friend recently invited me to share with him books and articles that I felt were important and that have influenced my thinking and my heart. He wanted recommendations, which is flattering to me.
I get asked that question a fair number of times. Many of us do. Most of us have many great recommendations, right.
I wanted to start my friend with one that gets closer to the core. I chose Pema Chodron’s Living Beautifully with Uncertainty and Change.
In the book, Pema includes a quote from the American dancer and choreographer, Agnes de Mille. Agnes’ father was Hollywood director William C. deMille.
“Living is a form of not being sure,
not knowing what next or how.
The moment you know how,
you begin to die a little.
The artist never entirely knows.
We guess.
We may be wrong,
but we take leap after leap in the dark.”
“Not being sure” is something we all must face along the way. Sometimes in the small things, like not being sure what is for dinner. Sometimes in the larger things, like not being sure about what one’s purpose really is, or how to encounter major shifts in life.
“Not being sure” is at the core of being awake.
