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Complete With Incomplete

I used to struggle with leaving anything undone. Finishing, for me, was imperative. Perhaps it's because of adages like these:
Stick to a task till it sticks to you, beginners are many and finishers are few.
Winners never quit and quitters never win.
Such sayings surely played a part in my being unable to leave any task incomplete. Finishing, of course, isn't always a bad thing. In fact, every morning I'm grateful I cleaned the kitchen before going to bed so that I don't wake up to last night's dishes. Sometimes, I'll admit, it's terribly inconvenient to make everyone wait till I finish the dishes before we move on to our next adventure, but I'm getting better at being able to leave things unfinished, knowing full well that if it's important, I'll get it done soon enough--and if I don't get back around to it, finishing must have not been that imperative.

The problem with thinking everything has a finish, or is simply a task that must be completed is that we don't enjoy the process. Instead of finding pleasure in the present moments, we paint picture And it is possible to feel complete even when a project lies incomplete. In fact, learning to feel complete with incomplete, greatly increases the joy of everyday living. It will lessen the striving, your insane focus on arriving, and breathe serenity into your soul. Plus, what is really ever complete anyway? My kitchen is a credible example. No matter how often I complete the task of cleaning up the dishes, they get undone with every next eating. If my focus is always on finishing the dishes, I'm going to miss the pleasure of having my hands in hot, soapy, dishwater. The joy of wiping up the counters and seeing clean where before there was mess.

But deeper than dishes, there is something more to this idea of getting comfortable with incomplete. If you are anything like me, then your dreams and goals are ever changing, and ever expanding. Once you achieve one goal or dream another one is born. And so again, the journey begins. Personally, I'm NEVER going to be able to accomplish everything I want to in this life. I'm constantly discovering new hobbies, planning new adventures, and toying with new ideas. I've found, after 39 years of living, that the joy from my trips or certifications, didn't come from the completion. It came from the journey. The planning, working, the day to day moments of complete incompleteness.

So I guess what I'm saying is since I'm constantly evolving, exploring, learning, and growing, I'm not going to fall into the trap of thinking finishing is the reward or that completeness is completely possible. I'm never going to feel complete if finishing is my measurement. I'm going to feel complete by realizing that I'm completely incomplete and that's completely cool with me. In fact, knowing I can feel complete with incomplete makes me feel complete.

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