Wisdom

Reverb's Prompt-a-Day Blog Challenge

December 10 – Wisdom. What was the wisest decision you made this year, and how did it play out? (Author: Susannah Conway)

What is wisdom? Merriam-Webster's online dictionary defines it as:

1 a : accumulated philosophic or scientific learning : knowledge
b : ability to discern inner qualities and relationships : insight
c : good sense : judgment

I think the synonyms sum it up pretty well: wisdom is judgment (of a course of action) based on knowledge and insight. I've made a lot of decisions this way in the last twelve months, many of them important, so it's hard to choose just one.

The first big one was to stop. In order to start healing my esophagus and digestive system, I stopped thinking that I could eat and drink whatever I wanted and keep my health. I quit listening to the big food industries and started paying attention to my body. Slowly but surely, it's healing. I'm eating a mostly vegan/macrobiotic diet and adjusting to life without wine, cheese and tomatoes. Oh, and chocolate. Sigh!

The second major wise decision was to give up. I gave up the notion that I need to have a physical office space in order to be a professional. I quit renting the space I'd had for four years as of July 1. The amazing thing is, the second I voiced the idea that I might do this, I had two offers of free space in which to hold my writing groups. Without the pressure of meeting the monthly rent, I began to feel the seeds of creativity breaking open. Stay tuned.

The third flash of wisdom was to hibernate. After five years of facilitating two writing groups on a weekly basis, I'm taking several months off. Hiding out. Resting. Aging in a vat of creative juices. Hopefully, at the end of this process, I'll say it was a very good year, and a wise decision.