Do you like deadlines? Are you ‘pressure prompted’? How do you approach the big transitions that life gives you?

Try as you might, there’s just no way to avoid having to get somewhere, do something, or step up to the plate at some certain predetermined moment.

Approaching a deadline is like being a leaf on the water, floating along until you’re caught in a current, then spiraling faster and faster in concentric circles until you finally plunge through the center.

Your to-do list starts out with more than will fit in the time you have left. It shrinks as the big moment gets closer. It becomes your not-done list once the deadline has passed. C’est la vie!

If it’s the sort of deadline that involves coming up with something creative, you might be the type that starts early and makes steady methodical progress, arriving at the finish line with a well-thought out and prepared result.

Or maybe you’re more of a last-minute-creative type. Pressure builds as time runs short, and your time spent pondering the blank slate suddenly collapses into a flash of inspiration and sheer brilliance manifests.

If you’re like me, the best laid plans to be methodical and well-prepared sometimes run into the reality of a rapidly receding timeline where only last-minute heroics can save the day.

Regardless, things have to happen and stuff has to get done. It’s part and parcel to the great dance of life. You can step lively or drag your feet, the choice is yours.

Life events are a different story. When it comes to things like weddings, career shifts, or a big move, the goal is less about being creative than simply getting things handled. When you have a lot of balls in the air, not dropping any is a win.

When a big moment is on the horizon, it’s all too easy to get flustered and lose sight of the big picture. The trick is to stay in the present moment as things speed up towards the big one.

I think moving across the world might qualify. Pulling up stakes in your home country to set down roots in another definitely counts as a big move. I should know, I’ve been busy buttoning things up in California. I’m writing this mid-air en route to Chenu.

Moving to anther country is miles beyond a typical trip. Trips are temporary, you simply press the pause button on life for a few days, weeks, or months. Life falls back into a familiar groove upon your return.

Emigrating is a complete rearrangement. The deadline before departure day has higher stakes than an ordinary vacation. In my case it’s involved setting up a whole series of scenarios where parts of my world in California will be running on autopilot while I settle into a new routine in France.

It may take some time before my new center of gravity is completely settled. France felt far away and exotic before fate and the magic of romance gifted me the opportunity to spend the rest of my life there. The USA certainly looks much different when viewed from afar.

I’m guessing there may be a few loose ends to figure out back in California. But love leads the way forward to life in France. I’ll come back to Cali as a visitor in a year or so to visit old friends and cull out my ‘time capsule’ of stuff in storage that didn’t make the move.

Next time you’re on the upswing to a big deadline or turning point in life, know that the feeling on the downhill side is one you won’t soon forget. Some moments will be challenging, some euphoric, so make the most of each one since they will soon be in your past.

To the future! With much love!

Au revoir till next Monday!.

Merci et à bientôt!

M+

ML #684

Mark Metz
Monday Love Movement Calendar