Recognizing Multiple Soul Purposes

Healing as a Path to Soul Purpose

Once again, my writing dug something out of my psyche I’d managed to stuff down unintentionally from the years of practice I gained as part of my family. This time, it wasn’t another toxic package of unfelt emotions, but the realization that elusive soul purpose I’ve been seeking has been right here all along…in multiple iterations. It might have been easy to miss the small ones which gave me the tools to take on the larger ones, but missing out on the fact I’ve been actively pursuing, and progressing on a major one has me shaking my head in disbelief. In fact, the idea we’re limited to a single sole purpose is now nothing more or less than my own naivete.

In the midst of all my healing work on both personal and familial traumas, I missed seeing I’ve been working on something which is, in my opinion, even more important. I’ve been chipping away at one of the worst beliefs ever passed down through the generations. The idea feelings need to be stuffed down and ignored rather than expressed and released had far outlived its usefulness even before I was born. In fact, it’s done infinitely more harm than good, and needed to be removed from our repertoire.

Though I haven’t eradicated it by any means, I’ve at least begun the process of chipping away at it, and giving future generations a starting point, if nothing else. However, the greater discovery is soul purpose isn’t a single moment in time when all the lights come on and point to one, single, momentous accomplishment. Instead, it’s like links in a chain where one connects to the next, and depends on the ones on each side to form a structure composed of many small, but significant accomplishments throughout your life.

Life is a Series of Completions

In short, soul purpose isn’t one, or a handful of accomplishments at all. It’s recognizing the breadcrumbs which lead from one improvement to another throughout your lifetime. Though some are here to accomplish monumental deeds, most of us are tasked with simpler, less world-shaking (but no less important) fragments of a larger puzzle. Regardless of size and perceived impact, no fragment is any more or less critical to the whole than any other. Like bricks in a skyscraper, leave even one brick out, or incomplete and the whole structure is compromised.

There might have been a time I wished I had the strength and tenacity to accomplish things which would be noticed by many, even if it was simply publishing my as yet unfinished memoir. I’m learning a quote from my short stint as a performer, “there are no small parts, just small actors” is just as applicable to life. The part we play as we pursue our own soul journey has more impact than we’ll ever know. We need to play those parts so someone else has what they need to play theirs.

Sometimes, we simply need to be an ear; neither sympathetic nor judgemental, for someone to work things out for themselves. It’s not our experiences, per se, which helped someone move on to the next leg of their own soul journey. Sure, our experiences are certainly what teach us to be that listening ear, but “listening” means just that. We’re not offering advice, or lessons we’ve learned ourselves. We’re holding space for someone to put the pieces together themselves.

Sometimes You Just Hold the Lantern

We may shine a light on a particular part of their story, but other than that, it’s not our solution to find. Think of it this way. I often write about working through a problem on the pages of this blog. I start in one spot with an issue that’s perplexing me, and by the end of my 1000-1500 words, I’ve come around to, if not a complete solution, at least a new direction I can take. The computer screen is, in essence, my sounding board.

Many of you go down the same sorts of rabbit holes I do, but find it more difficult to find your way out. By being an ear; by holding space, it’s essentially holding a flashlight so you can find your way by yourself. The flashlight simply illuminates what you weren’t able to see. It doesn’t tell you how to interpret what you see, much less how to use it. Only you can make that determination. Sometimes, it helps to be able to vocalize what you’re feeling and talk through where you’re feeling stuck with someone who both understands a bit about where you are, but who also understands you need to figure out a way around or through it on your own. Else, how are you going to learn from it, or be able to face weightier challenges in the future.

Here’s another quote for you:

Give a man a fish and he eats for a day; teach a man to fish, and he eats for a lifetime.

If we listen to someone with the expectation of solving their problems for them, we’re not giving them the opportunity to learn and grow, and cultivate their own problem solving skills. I’m not even considering the fact people don’t usually want you to fix them. They want you to hear them.

Each Life Purpose is Valuable

The point I’m trying to make in my usual, convoluted fashion is, there are those whose life experiences teach them how to move mountains, or lead teams that move mountains. There are others whose life experiences teach them to be the sounding boards when someone gets stuck and needs to talk through things before getting up, putting their virtual rucksack on their back, and moving forward after a setback or two.

Though it might seem like this a one-sided affair, it’s probably one of the most synergistic you’ll find. One gets their satisfaction from finding their own solution. The other, from being in the right place at the right time with a lantern. Most of all, we revisit these roles over and over throughout our catalog of soul journeys, playing one role, then the other, as we, ourselves, learn, grow, and leave our marks on the world. Whether those marks are buried within the structures we help build, or stand out like a beacon isn’t important. Continuing to take the next step, and play each role is what matters…if you ask me.

Grateful for Many “ah ha” Moments

My gratitudes today are:

1. I’m grateful for realizing my soul purpose, and as a result, my soul journey never was singular.
2. I’m grateful for the words which continue to flow, even when my mind can’t quite grab the word I think is right.
3. I’m grateful for a quiet birthday of self-care, and a little self-indulgence.
4. I’m grateful for being able to write my way through my problems most of the time, and for having a listening ear when I’m struggling.
5. I’m grateful for learning to recognize the friendships which contain qualities I need, and allow me to give back in kind.

About the Author

Sheri Conaway is a Holistic Ghostwriter, and an advocate for cats and mental health. Sheri believes in the Laws of Attraction, but only if you are a participant rather than just an observer. Her mission is to Make Vulnerable Beautiful. In her spare time, she’s also an accountant with extensive experience in Government Contracting.