I've put continuing my story on hold for a bit. My day to days are in constant motion and an extrovert's delight. Any few minutes of alone time I have, I spend on reflection and rest, rather than emotional release. While I need a release, I need the space to do that. So for now, to keep this project going and to actually work towards the self-discipline of mindful religiousness, I'd like to reflect on passion come full circle.
The room that received the most devastation in my Harvey flooded house, was my office. I've homeschooled my three children, ages 19, 17, and 15, their entire lives, so if you can imagine how large our library was- it was my greatest loss. I have no desire to replace my entire library, since the truth is I hadn't even read half of the books. So I made a rule for myself early on- I'm allowed to purchase one book at a time and cannot purchase another one until I've read the previous purchase. There's a silver lining in my lose: I had to face myself, well, I'm having to face myself in ways I thought impossible. There's been so many instances where I've wanted to battle my demons, I've wanted any ugliness to come to light, but the majority of the time ugly showed itself in me, I didn't know how to change. So part of Harvey's silver lining is that now 'how' is brought to light, as well. Enter, Kandi's Rule #1. Mindful book purchases. No more impulsive book buys. No more wasted bookshelf space. When I have a moment, I'm reading, so I can purchase the next book. Truth be told, I love to read; I don't know how it happened, but I just stopped. I'd sporadically read, but it's been years since there was any consistency.
“Basically, the premise is about paying careful attention to what and how others do things in systems, how the systems are actually designed, how we aren't actually taught to successfully navigate the systems but are actually educated to navigate the systems counterproductively and to the advantage of the everyday people who took the time to pay attention, not to books, but to what their senses reveal about how systems work.”
I achieved level 38 seven weeks into this trial, so for my birthday the family took me to Barnes & Noble. I broke the rule my first go. It was so hard to pick just one, so I narrowed my stack of potential buys to two. Man, I have a ways to go! Yeah, so I bought two books. I finished reading one just last week. It was a mind blowing read, and I love the feeling of wanting to read every second I can spare but at the same time feeling disappointed when I'm done with THAT book. Before moving onto my second buy, I decided to read a book my girls are reading for our eclectically pieced together economics curriculum, so we could have a proper discussion on the matter. While, I'm inspired to get started on my second Barnes & Noble purchase, since the books I choose are really that thought-provoking, I'm enthusiastic about my current read, Rich Dad Poor Dad, by Robert Kiyosaki.
The thing about it is that many of the points and lessons he addresses are ideas I've often contemplated on my own accord my entire adult life, notably the twenties levels. And here I am, basically reviewing my own ideas from another perspective from someone who has actually applied the lessons to his life. I've read reviews on his books, and many folks complain that he doesn't actually give a formula, a step by step process of how to get rich. But because I've heard these ideas before in my own mind, because of the accuracy of resonance that alerts me from sentence to sentence, I get it. It's in my blood, evoking such strong passion. It's like someone from my past sharing long forgotten secrets that will unlock the parts of me imprisoned. He broke free. And now its my turn. I can do the do. Or I can be imprisoned. Basically, the premise is about paying careful attention to what and how others do things in systems, how the systems are actually designed, how we aren't actually taught to successfully navigate the systems but are actually educated to navigate the systems counterproductively and to the advantage of the everyday people who took the time to pay attention, not to books, but to what their senses reveal about how systems work. His focus is the money system. But I see it as applicable to all systems. Some get rich formulas may work for a season, but until a person pays attention with all their faculties, technology or culture will likely outdate the formula fairly quicky. It is about a shift in perspective AND application of this shift. Again, for some the get rich formulas may work for a season, but if their perspectives do not change, they will fail. Because essentially, it is about seeing things in plain site that are DESIGNED to work against us. And since this is my manifesto, I'd like to share some ideas from the book that are not new to me and that I have yet to apply. Since I've been working on this post for two days, I'm posting as is. See any of the posts titled, "Revelations," for a continuation of this conversation.
And just for the record: The book came out in 1997, and I became aware of it and actually had it in my small, but growing library at the time, so the irony of it all, is astonishing. Nineteen years ago, at the age of 19, Rich Dad made its way into my library. I never read one page. Eventually, it was purged from my library. Book purging was a necessary routine for someone that has moved roughly every year and a half- 32 times altogether! While I didn't learn lessons via the book until this week, I did begin to understand much of what Robert says by using my own faculties, against what others say and do; I began to see (all throughout the last twenty years) what he was talking about without ever having read a word until now!
I'm rich in spirit, not poor anymore! I was only poor, because I thought and acted as a poor person.
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