How even taxes are part of life’s rhythms

As I’m looking at cycles and rhythms, it struck me that taking care of our taxes by April 15 every year creates, and generally becomes, a part of our life’s rhythm. Isn’t that interesting? To consider that taxes, of all things, are actually part of our life rhythm.

It has become a part of our rhythm whether we want it to or not. It’s part of our life rhythm, much like our daily routine; making our beds, brushing our teeth, driving to work, picking up the kids (wherever they are), dropping them off (wherever they’re going), fixing meals and paying the bills. Interesting, isn’t it?

As I was looking at taxes being part of our annual rhythm, I realized that we often consider “larger” events such as paying taxes, moving, losing a job or getting a new job, an interruption to the rest of life. Consider that it isn’t an interruption, it’s all part of our rhythm.

When these events come along, it’s just our rhythm changing; taking a different road, creating a new rhythm. It’s an opportunity for us to see what else we want to add or subtract from our new rhythm.

If we look at larger events being an interruption to our lives, our life rhythm, it’s much harder to work with the event. If it’s an interruption (interruptions are usually unexpected), we often don’t want it. We didn’t ask for it and we don’t want it.

If we attempt to manage the interruption from that space, we will find it a difficult path to walk. If we approach the larger event as an opportunity for something else (we get to create the something else), we open up a completely different world for ourselves than if we view it as an interruption.

If we view it as an opportunity, then we get to create at least part of it. We are more likely to see possibilities in this event; we are more likely to be, and stay, positive about the changes this event brings. We can participate in the change(s) instead of being completely resistant.

We are resistant to interruptions. We don’t want them, we didn’t ask for them, etc. We see little to nothing positive about an interruption and it rarely shows up as an opportunity for anything. When we attempt to work from this viewpoint, we often are stonewalled at every, or almost every, step. It just doesn’t work nearly as well as having the larger event be an opportunity for something else.

We don’t always know, or can’t always tell at first, what the opportunity is or what it might be. In that case, it’s an exploration and an adventure is to be had!

What opportunity lies within the happening of this event?

Deni Krauss is a transition and grief coach. She can be reached at deni@denikrausscoaching.com, facebook.com/DeniKrauss, linkedin.com or at (415) 516-3035.