I want help, I want company, I want to sit my ass in a chair. Simultaneously, I want to move, I want to dig a sand castle, I want to walk really, really, really far into the fog, I want to have a mudslide and then a nap. My friend's dad used to always sing to her, "You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you get what you need." Is it true? Do you get what you need? I think, sometimes, we want something so badly, that it's the wanting that causes the distress. I'm not capable at bending the world to my will, it's a shame. I can set my intentions, but I can't always get what I want. So, what's the plan?
This comes up for me, yes, of course. But, I also see it come up for so many of my clients. An unmet want can be an opportunity to clear up a lot of stuff and reorient ourselves. If you find something you want and can't have (or at least don't know how to get there) here is a quick cheat sheet to make some progress out of it:
1) Identifying what it is that you want. Sometimes it is not very simple. Dig below the surface.
Today I want to be taken care of. I want to be nurtured.
2) Try to figure out what is missing. What is the unmet need beneath your want?
What's missing is me taking care of myself.
3) Gift yourself something (mine idea here) that meets your unmet need. Then check back in with your want and see how it is doing.
I am making iced tea. And scheduling a pedicure.