With the shift in the season, I’ve been observing nature and thinking about how we can Plan Ahead like a Squirrel!
Last week I awoke one morning to a baby squirrel outside my bedroom windowsill cackling at something…probably upset or fearful that it’s safe and secret stash was in jeopardy! Do you ever feel like that? Fearful that someone or something is threatening what you feel is precious, dear or even life sustaining.
What does it mean to plan ahead like a squirrel? Squirrels are devoted to collecting, gathering and preparing for anything! They are also devoted to PLAY and sometimes erratic behavior.
Have you ever wondered how they can predict what they will need? How do any of us predict our needs, plan and gather for our future? These predictions are usually based on the past, our insecurities, learned behavior and our environment-circumstances.
Some of us lean towards the frugal side, relying on the surety that we will always have what we need and will always be able to provide for ourselves and our families. Others tend to go a little NUTS (punny right?) and collect more than we can use, feeling secure in the thought of excess.
I’m certainly not here to say what’s right or wrong for you or even for myself. It’s important that we each observe these tendencies in ourselves and understand which direction we sway.
Do you tend towards being overly prepared, gathering so much that you feel burdened and weighed down?
Or do you spend more time in pursuit of play and forget to put something away for later?
Ask yourself what you need to do to prepare for the coming days, weeks, months and years of your life…what do you want to put away for later and what can you let go of to lighten your load? Lean into your fear’s and lighten your load, trust that what you have gathered will always be enough…unburden yourself when you feel heavy and something no longer serves you.
We can learn from our friend the squirrel that we can not be playful and weighted down all at the same time. Find a safe place to store what you have gathered, release the rest and get playful with this sense of unburdening!
Ask yourself why you are keeping things. Do you want to pass them on to your children? Once they are old enough (8-10) start talking to them and showing them what you are keeping. This will be a great way to learn about their “saving style” and they might share what they feel most joyful about keeping and what they don’t really care about. Find ways to honor and integrate their interests, accomplishments etc into daily life (like the ribbons above). As they go through “phases” gently say goodbye with gratitude and pack up the “best of”.