SIE PROJECT DESCRIPTION AND TIMELINE

Joseph Campbell, an American professor most known for his work in comparative mythology, writes about the importance of following your bliss and moving towards that which you feel genuinely passionate about.  He says, “We’re so engaged in doing things to achieve purposes of outer value that we forget the inner value, the rapture that is associated with being alive, is what it is all about.”   What he means is that we spend so much time doing what we’re told and what we think we need to do that we fail to honor what truly makes us feel joyful and vital.  And so, instead, we feel kind of tired and maybe even depressed or resentful.

He also writes, “If you do follow your bliss you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. Follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.”  I think he means that following your bliss helps you feel on track with your true self, and it also brings you to new places and heights you couldn’t even imagine.  Your life becomes an adventure, and you’re excited to live it. 

So, while you have some time, discover and follow your bliss, at least a little.  In other words, explore, do, build, or create something that you’ve always felt passionately drawn to but never had the time or energy for.

Here are some ideas to choose from:

• Learn something NEW
  • How to play a musical instrument, how to paint or draw, how to sew or knit or crochet, how to cook, or how to sing, dance, etc...
• Challenge yourself 
  • Do an activity for an extended period in a way you never have before.  For example, if you like to run, challenge yourself to run a distance that you’ve never come close to before, like a marathon.  OR, if you like to do yoga and meditate, challenge yourself to do so for one hour every day for 5 weeks without missing a single day.  OR if you like to write, challenge yourself to write one short story a week.  OR if you like to cook, challenge yourself to cook 10 new 3 course meals for your family. you get the idea.
• Research and do an in-depth study 
  • Something you’ve always wanted to know more about. The sky’s the limit here so long as it’s something you are very excited to learn about.  It can be something cultural, scientific, physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual, mystical, environmental, ethical, political, artistic, etc....
• Design and build something
  • Perhaps a garden, a piece of furniture, a tree house, a tipi or yurt, clothing, etc... 

TIMELINE