The essence of life is nothing but the burning purpose of this moment is now......  

Freedom Of Choice

I have always been a planner and a goal setter but over the past few years of retirement I have been learning a different way. It has been a radical shift in my thinking and doing to a freer-flowing mode of being.

My days no longer hold constraints to anything at this point. I can choose to do something I am excited about and have fun doing it. There is no fixed goal, no set plan, and the destination doesn't matter as much as the journey. Instead, I now depend on my flow of ideas, and on things that happen along the way. Things can shift. I can not predict these changes when I get started but I have learned to adapt. No goal would be adequate to the task. If something does come up - a new opportunity presents itself - I can completely shift. I can let go of my idea of what my day was supposed to be because the ideas of what should be are now lightly held. They mean nothing, really, and the important thing now is the flow. I have learned to be flexible instead of set. I have learned to be good at change and uncertainty instead of fearing it.  

As situations arise I adapt and let go of my plans and goals. I move with the flow of the water, with the changing of the landscape. I am now free to do this because where I end up is no longer of prime importance - I just want to be present on my journey, be compassionate with each step, and have fun each moment along the way. No destination or goal matters if they are all good. Each step along the way now becomes the destination and is exactly where I need to be.

I am now comfortable living each day without a goal. I can write something for fun, just because I want to get it out of me, without knowing what the effect of my writing will be. I can figure out the words as I go, without knowing what the finished piece will read like. 

I now live my life without a fixed plan - without knowing where I will be living in five years or what I want to achieve next. I certainly don't know all the answers, but I do know that I am much freer as I have learned to let go of goals, fixed plans and fixed destinations. And life is good.