I met my friend Paul for dinner at London’s South Bank. The question of where to eat soon had us both laughing as we recalled that we’re both horribly indecisive in that arena. After wandering back and forth and settling on one of the two places where I’d eaten before and had a good experience (how innovative!), Paul mentioned how funny it was that I couldn’t make up my mind about where to eat but I was so comfortable moving to an entirely new country with no substantial connections. The big decisions – no problem; the small decisions – an endless merry-go-round.
That caused another peal of laughter and a realization that he was absolutely right. On a larger scale, I live my life with a great deal of intention and thought. On a smaller scale, I worry about being an imposition or too forceful. What if I say I’m in the mood for Thai, but my friend really wants Italian? There is a part of me that doesn’t want my friend to miss out on what he wants for little old me. The flip side of that is that I’m really not allowing my friend to have his own voice – to say, nah, not really feeling Thai tonight – what else are you up for? Or to choose to go to Thai because his friend wants to.
True, there are many times when I’m really open to many options, and I want to be in the role of going wherever my friend wants to go. Especially when it comes to food, I can be a complete creature of habit, and perhaps someone else’s choice will lead to a new experience for me and a wish fulfilled for him. But maybe flipping that around could be fun sometimes, too.
I wonder what would happen if I took that same intention for moving to Hawaii, moving to London, following my heart & gut, and applied it to dinner. If each small thing starts to fill the moment with a level of intention and satisfaction more completely, what kind of magical things might that manifest in life as a whole?
That is a very interesting question.
