One of my all time favorite books is The Architecture of All Abundance by Lenedra J. Carroll who is the mother of singer/songwriter Jewel. As some of you know, I am a big Jewel fan.
There are many sections in the book where Lenedra talks about how Jewel came to achieve her dreams. Here is a passage from the book (a dialogue between mother and daughter) which has always resonated with my soul:
“Well, what do I do? I have to do something or nothing will happen”. Impatience marks her voice.
I laugh. “Taking steps just because you can, because you want to, because everyone says you should…it doesn’t work – or rather, it’s a lot of work to make it work.
“You need to do what you love. Sit in your favorite coffeehouses and on the beach, write and sing and meet people. Hang with the local musicians you are meeting. Daydream a lot; flesh out your dream. Have fun with the idea.”
“I already have,” she grumbles. “That’s all I’ve been doing for weeks and weeks. Nothing’s happened.”
“That was before you were so clear about what you want to do, Jewel. That clarity will absolutely affect the results. You’ll talk to people differently, notice things you didn’t before. Hold your idea strongly in your Being, speak it in your prayers, imagine yourself in this new future you are conceiving of. You’ll be amazed how easily, how naturally it comes to you. Trust the time it takes and enjoy the time. It will come when you are ready. The next step will make itself obvious. Don’t take it until you see it clearly.”
Two weeks later Jewel calls elated. “I have a gig!” she shouts. “I was singing with Poltz on one of his shows at the InnerChange coffeehouse and the owner heard me. She wanted to know whose songs I sang and I told her mine. She asked if I had enough original material for a show so I told her I did. Then she offered me Thursday nights! I worked out the money with her and everything!”
As some of you know, I used to be a Type A personality. I had every thing planned and the idea of not having a plan used to scare me. However, with time and experience, I have learned the wisdom of letting go and going with the flow of life.
Letting go does not mean that you sit back and do nothing. Letting go means enjoying where you are and doing what is needed at any given moment. Your future is determined by what you do now. There is no need to lament about the past and to worry about the future.
One day, before my mother was diagnosed with terminal cancer, I had a great job at a publishing house and was living in the suburbs of Chicago. I was going on vacation the next week and I was excited about the time off. Within twenty-four hours, my husband and I had to leave our jobs and head back to New Jersey so that I could take care of my mom. One week later, we resigned from our jobs and officially relocated.
Life can change in an instant. Do not wait for a tragedy to occur in order to realize the value of the moment.
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“Letting go means enjoying where you are and doing what is needed at any given moment.” I’ve been living according to the theory of surrender lately. Law of Attraction taught me to constantly seek & strive. Surrender has given me the gift of waking up where I am right now – in the moment. The first time I did it, it was oddly difficult and painful. But when I accepted that difficulty and pain as part of the moment I was in, everything shifted. And suddenly the things I’d been seeking sought me — effortlessly.
Thanks for writing this!
Megan “JoyGirl!” Bord’s most recent blog post..Who We Are (Quote From Adyashanti)
Hi Megan,
Your experience sounds like mine.
When I first released control, it scared me because I was so afraid of what would happen. As time went on, it became second-nature to just surrender. However, I do have moments when it is hard but thankfully they are not moments and not a way of life. I am happy to see that everything came so effortlessly to you once you surrendered. I am sure your words will provide comfort to others. 
Such a poignant truth. Your post today makes a lovely companion for David’s, over at Raptitude. I believe the two of you are on the same wavelength today, reinforcing a message the universe wants us to understand.
Every moment matters.
Lisis’s most recent blog post..What I Learned From A Stripper
Hi Lisis,
Every moment definitely matters and thank you for letting me know about David’s piece. I have been busy with stuff over here, I have not made my daily rounds to other blogs so thanks for the heads up.
Thank you for the great reminder! I’m feeling much in the same place as Jewel did here. I keep thinking that nothing will happen unless I make it happen, but I’m not sure exactly what it is that I want to make happen.
Perhaps I just need to relax and let the Universe unfold as it should, as it always does. But that’s hard to do when you feel like you’re in a holding pattern…
Hi Jay,
My plan is to email you right after I review comments on my blog and here you are! Are you reading my mind?
I used to be the kind of person who felt exactly like Jewel did. I used to do so many things in order to force something to happen but it never worked and it never felt right. When I relaxed and focused on the moment, it is amazing how much more easily things flowed and fell into place. This does not mean that you sit back and do nothing. It means you have a vision of what it is that you want and you focus on whatever the moment requires. Let’s say you want to be a chef in a great restaurant. You have to first be able to really cook well. So you go and do whatever you can to cook really well. That may mean going to school or just practicing. When you focus on the task at hand, the next step will become apparent when it is time.
“Letting go does not mean that you sit back and do nothing. Letting go means enjoying where you are and doing what is needed at any given moment. ”
That’s wonderful!
I had always been a detailed planner, conventional and safe-playing, and so full of fear of letting go. Letting go was scary, there was nothing to hold on to. Clinging is what energizes the fear but the ego tells us the opposite.
Kaushik’s most recent blog post..Zen Rebellion
Hi Kaushik,
Glad you liked the post. Letting go, at first, can be scary but once a person gets the hang of it, it is very liberating.
Beautifully and powerfully written
Hi Uzma,
Thank you, my friend.
Hope all is well.
I’m a big fan of Jewel too. I never knew she had this crisis though. I recently had a similar crisis.
I was thinking for a while that my fiction writing was just not going where I wanted it to, so instead of trying to hammer something out of nothing, I let it go. As it turned out, there was another part of my life that needed my attention. It was a part that is helping to bring my focus back to my writing again, but with more inspiration than before.
Great Post.
Frances’s most recent blog post..Standing on the Shore
Hi Frances,
Since you are a fan of Jewel, you would love the book. It gives the whole story as to how she made her dreams come true and it is a very inspirational read. It has helped me in so many ways.
Good for you for letting go and realizing that the part that needed attention helped you to focus on your writing. That is wonderful.
Thanks so much for sharing this passage with us! It’s wonderful. I love the last line you’ve written in this post. It’s important to realize the value of life before it’s too late. Every moment is precious and we must remind ourselves of that always. Thanks for a great post and a great reminder to live in the moment!
Positively Present’s most recent blog post..hope springs internal
Hi Dani,
The moment is all we have and how we handle it, determines the next moment.
Being a mum makes me take an awful lot less for granted than I ever did before. My nephews were at school where a gunman walked in and slaughtered an entire class of five year olds. Life has never been the same.
My youngest goes to high school in August. My teenage daughter can legally marry in two and a half years. For me, parenthood and watching my mum die have been the most beautiful, poignant lessons in loving and learning how to let go. I was pregnant wih my son when we had to switch off my mum’s life support machine.
Thanks for this, Nadia. It was lovely. I’m enjoying sharing your journey.
janice’s most recent blog post..Sharing the Seattle Journey
Hi Janice,
Is that the same incident that was on the news a couple years ago? If it is, I remember that story and it was so sad. No wonder life has never been the same. That would change anyone.
Thank you for sharing your experiences with letting go and like you, I watched my mother pass away and that is a tough lesson. It was interesting to see how the body slowly shuts itself down and it was a great teacher in the sense it was a vivid reminder that when you go, you leave everything behind except for how you acted, your thoughts, your memories and your feelings.
I think if people fully accepted the fact that they will pass away, they would live so differently and letting go would not be so hard.
PS Congratulations on being a Blog Her member – I just noticed!
janice’s most recent blog post..Sharing the Seattle Journey
Thank you so much, Janice.
I am very happy to be a part of it.
Great piece, Nadia, it does look like we are on the same wavelength today.
This is such a simple piece of wisdom but it’s so easy to forget. Even now I sometimes get wrapped up in trying to force certain outcomes and I become anxious if the moment doesn’t seem to be pointing where I want them to go, if that makes sense.
Jewel’s mother is very wise!
David Cain’s most recent blog post..This Will Never Happen Again
Hi David,
I used to be like that too and it is amazing how easily things fall into place when you don’t try to force them to happen.
You may like to read the book because it really provides great information on learning how to let go.
Nadia,
Wow! This is the third post I’ve read today about living in the present moment. I guess somebody or something is trying to tell me something.
It really is amazing how rapidly our life can change. You’ve got to go with the flow of the present or drown in the refuse of the past and future.
Roger – A Content Life’s most recent blog post..Meditation for Beginners (Week 5) – Walking Meditation
Hi Roger,
Maybe the Universe is trying to tell all of us something!
I love how you wrote “the refuse of the past and future”. Great imagery.
I really needed to hear the ideas that were presented in this post— be your dream, imagine, let loose, let go of the befores and afters — see yourself as you long to be– walk a little lighter, it will come, because it is already— as you can see it’s hard for me to put into words, but I have grasped the spirit in this post, and feel a re-newed “mission” so to speak– surrounded in faith– like sun rays heating our skin or rain drops wetting it…
Thank you truly for sharing–
Hi Molly,
You wrote that it was hard for you to put into words what you are feeling but I think you did a fantastic job! I am so happy that the post revived your mission and for it to be surrounded in faith is awesome. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. When I write a post, I never know how it is going to be received. I write from my heart and I listen to what my heart tells me to write. So when someone tells me that one of my posts helped them, words cannot adequately describe the joy and the humility that comes to mind.
Nadia,
Once again, you wrote about something that I needed to be reminded of!
Great post! Life can certainly surprise us, suddenly on some occasions! I guess it takes off the monotony and keep us thinking!
Hi Lotus,
I am happy to be of help!
Life can change in an instant and we forget that sometimes because we have our routines that we go through each day. 
“It will come when you are ready.” What great advice for a mother to give her daughter. I’m ready to read that book now. I love all the esoterica you share with us, Nadia, like this book and the poem yesterday.
My step-son has been friends with Jewel’s husband for many years. At my daughter’s wedding in December, he said that Ty and Jewel come by his house often. They live near each other in Central Texas. Let’s hope that since I am SO ready to meet her it will come. She is a truly special woman like you are.
Totally lovely post today. Thanks again, Shiny Girl.
Brenda’s most recent blog post..Just Dance!
Hi Brenda,
I am honored to be considered a special woman like Jewel. Thank you so much!
You should read that book, it is wonderful. I have so many sections higlighted and I have read that book so much, pages are falling out. That book helped me in so many ways. So I highly recommend it.
I hope you get a chance to meet Jewel. She has led an interesting life and maybe you can talk her into letting me interview her for my site!
See…I can be playful too! 
What a great book. I also love Jewel and with 4 daughters this resonates with me.
I’ll be checking out the book at the library today since I have to return books. Thanks!
Tess The Bold Life’s most recent blog post..A Bold Technique That Creates Miracles
Hi Tess,
You are most welcome and yes, please read that book if you can find it at your library. It is a wonderful book. Just as I wrote to Brenda, my copy has so many sections highlighted and pages are falling out. It is a very inspirational read and has helped me so much in my journey.
Love the post, Nadia!
Hi Grace,
Hope all is well and I am so happy that you liked the post.
The ego will always be with you but we can all learn how to view properly so that we don’t become overpowered by it. Of course, some days this will be easier and other days it will not. However, awareness of the process is really a blessing.
Hi Nadia
I always enjoy reading your work. This one is one of my favorite.
I love the message of letting go and what you said about, “Life can change in an instant. Do not wait for a tragedy to occur in order to realize the value of the moment.”
Words from the wise ~ Nadia
Thank you,
Giovanna Garcia
Imperfect Action is better than No Action
Giovanna Garcia’s most recent blog post..You are in the right place at the right time.
Hi Giovanna,
Thank you so much for always being so kind.
I thought of you today when I went to my local Starbucks and saw some money on the floor. I gave it to the store manager…so your work resonates with me too. Hope all is well, my friend.
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