Starting at the Beginning…

 

Everyone can live a meaningful life. ‘What does that mean’, ‘what does it look like’ and ‘how do we get from here to there’ are the big questions.

For now, Let’s start at the beginning of what this blog is about, shall we?

 

Choosing.

“The act of making a choice.”

 

Margin.

“The edge of the paper that remains blank.”

 

What Matters Most.

“Subjectively what each of us finds most important.”

 

Morning sun reflecting off the gulf waters in Galveston

The idea here, is that we each get to choose our lives. Sometimes we feel trapped, as if life is happening to us. When truthfully, a few carefully made choices could make room for a piece or two of what we feel is missing. Those missing pieces could be anything. There’s no script. We each get to decide what matters most for ourselves.

But those choices can be very difficult: both to recognize and to stick with. Having encouragement in community could be just what we all need to be able to make those difficult choices into reality.

So this space is the opposite of “should”.

I’m not here to dictate what your priorities are ‘supposed to’ be.

{In fact, the words ‘should’ and ‘supposed to’ are blacklisted right from the start}

It is not a place of judgment or condemning, but of encouragement for us each to find our own ‘most important matters’. Then encourage each other in making the necessary choices toward those priorities.

Do we ‘let’ the meaningful activities or elements get squeezed out of life? kind of.

It certainly takes a good deal of intention to make room for the things that matter most. That’s where I am. Trying to figure out the balance of doing enough of the obligations so that the ‘necessaries’ in life get handled, but having enough margin to do some things that are more personal than dishes, laundry, or checking email!

In the most technical sense, margin is the space around the edge of the page. When writing on lined paper or in a word processor, the edges are typically left blank. The margins are there to leave space for legibility. Having empty space makes the written word easier to read.

Margins on paper are similar to ‘white space’ in the design world. The white space leaves room for the message to stand out. In essence, the white space emphasizes the message. If the brochure or billboard has little ‘white space’, it may seem cluttered or too busy. The reader can be overwhelmed and lose sight of the sign’s intended message. This reason is why concise and streamlined are ideal traits: say it in as few words as possible for the strongest impact.

Each of us can compare our life to a piece of paper or an advertisement. How much of the space is colorful and busy? How much of the space is empty, letting your attention be on the main thing – what matters most?

In life, there are certain inescapable obligations. If we spent 100% of every day on them, they’d still never be complete. Especially when children are in the picture. Ideal margin is corralling the obligations enough that we can still support ourselves but have enough space to do some things that make life meaningful.

What can happen though, is that we cull the seemingly ‘optional’ elements that make life worth living. These elements are not urgent, but are the life-giving breaths of fresh air. Infusing meaning into the day-to-day.

What makes your life meaningful?

Your answers will be different than mine. That’s what makes us each unique. And its okay.

Maybe what matters to you is being able to travel. Or you’d rather have more money in the bank. Or you’d like to run a marathon. Or you’d like to enroll in classes to develop new skills. Or you’d like to devote yourself to being available to your family and/or neighbors.

Choosing Margin is not about WHAT the priorities are, but HOW it is we make room for them.