We are proud to announce the cabin has had its official first flush! Our neighbors were warned there would be much hootin’ and hollerin’ when Dave and I fought over who would be the first to christen the throne. We soon realized that nobody gives a crap about our crap.

Dave has installed and connected our toilet, sink and shower. It has been a long time coming…almost 6 years. Good thing as the outhouse is singing a highly scented swan song and would prefer retirement.

I have been thinking about decisions lately – our ability to make them, what drives our choices, the assumptions we make in order to choose…and how conscious we are over the entire process.

Over the past 6 years I have wrestled with the cabin purchase decision. What the F*CK was I thinking?? sums it up nicely. I made certain assumptions about the amount of work it would take, including a BIG one that Dave was over-exaggerating when he predicted 5-10 years to completion.

As I have shared in previous posts, “the cabin dream” has not come close to what I initially envisioned. For a long time, I thought this meant I had made a wrong decision, based on the New Age adage: “if it is too hard then it must be wrong” – struggle and resistance indicating misalignment.

Hogwash

The only things suffering from misalignment were my own attitude and preconceptions. Granted, I had to have rose-colored glasses on to start this journey, but they are no longer helpful. What has been helpful has been revisiting the tenants of Stoicism.

(I am not an expert on this. However, I recommend that if you are just as confused and disheartened but the state of the world and feeling a bit lost, it is worth learning about Stoicism)

This fundamental belief helped to re-align my attitude on the cabin:

Live in harmony with nature

The Stoics saw the universe as one rational, interconnected system, governed by an ordering principle they called the logos. Living in harmony with nature means lining your choices up with how reality actually works rather than how you wish it worked: accepting what is outside your influence, and putting your full effort into what is within it, your judgements, your choices, your actions.

This is acceptance with its sleeves rolled up. The rainstorm is not up to you. Whether you spend the afternoon furious about the rainstorm is. The Stoic does not pretend the storm isn’t happening, and does not waste an hour resenting it either. They adapt the plan and get on with their part of the whole.

https://www.stoichandbook.co/a-beginners-guide-to-the-core-beliefs-of-stoicism-foundational-principles-and-beyond/

Here’s another assumption that I’ve had to challenge as of late: that all of the hard work will be worth it in the end.

Who is guaranteed that their blood, sweat, tears, time and money will be rewarded? I do not bring this up to sound like a grumpy old lady who has allowed bitterness and negativity to triumph. Quite the opposite. When I am able to let go of investing effort and expecting a corresponding outcome, strangely the effort becomes the reward, not the result. In throwing away the assumption of cabin completion, I have found it easier to enjoy my time up there.

Now, there is effort in practicing all of this. It does not come easily to me as I have been trained to focus on outcome and results. Enjoy the process for the process’ sake? Well that feels a tad revolutionary. But sometimes revolutions are necessary.

Again, the cabin has kicked butt and thrown tightly held assumptions and beliefs to the curb in a hot, jumbled mess.

There is a sense of freedom that has arisen from all of this. Letting go of the end result (which is not guaranteed, never was) and just enjoying it for what it is now…I could learn a thing or two from Rumi who has no problem enjoying the present moment. Like all pups. That is all there ever is.

Until next time, which could be a week or a year from now, stay well and challenge assumptions whenever you can.

With love from the cabin.