Stop Looking

Two powerful words that my mum said to me last week and which have inspired me ever since. Mum had watched a YouTube* clip of a woman who said that when you want to attract something into your life, or when you’re incessantly searching for what you want, sometimes all you need to do is to “stop looking”.

I am passionate about finding happiness, peace and love – and I know that sometimes I can get caught up in trying to make my life better, that I forget to stand still and enjoy what I already have that is good. When I stop looking, I allow what I want to flow into my life.

I think it’s about finding the balance between taking action and waiting for what you want. I like to use a gardening metaphor to explain it. You begin by planting a seed in the soil. If you’re a lover of all things that grow, like Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of The Rings, then you’ll be excited about seeing what you’ve planted grow and bloom into a beautiful flower or rosebush. What won’t help, though, is attending to the planted seed day in, day out, every second of every hour. The seed needs ‘room’ to grow. It has its own process. We cannot interfere in its growth. Of course we can take some action and help it grow, such as watering the soil when it needs it. But we have to be careful not to water it too much, or else it will never come into fruition. Sometimes we need to step back and let nature take its course.

It’s the same with our ideas, our creativity, and our lives. We can plant a seed, do our best in helping the seed sprout, but when we obsess over it, interfere too much or try too hard, the seed may not grow at all.

In a world where time is of the essence, this kind of attitude towards allowing things to unfold and happen seems so rare. It’s all fast-paced, everything has to be done by yesterday, and we want instant response and gratification.

Where has the joy in watching something grow gone? Where has the enjoyment in the process of creativity, the journey, the adventure of life, gone? Far too often we focus too much on the end result and in the meantime we miss out on the wonders and the magic of life. We forget to enjoy our own journey on Earth. We forget to be mindful of every moment we are in existence. 

If you’re always looking for what you want, you might miss it when it comes along – it may even already be right in front of you. Have faith and courage, and when you finally see, feel or touch it, seize it!

So I’ll remind myself to stop looking for love, peace and happiness. It’s already here, inside my heart. 

I just didn’t see it.

*If you’re interested in watching the YouTube clip, please click here