Living from Your Inner Knowing

Summary

Trista Signe Ainsworth reflects on learning to navigate life through feelings and inner knowing rather than intellect, inspired by her interactions with nature and the teachings of Stuart Wilde.

Abstract

In a thoughtful essay titled "Living from Your Inner Knowing," Trista Signe Ainsworth shares her insights from Day 30 of her journey exploring Stuart Wilde's "The Infinite Self." She recounts a serendipitous encounter with a slug in her garden, which symbolizes the importance of slowing down, letting go of old beliefs, and trusting one's inner feelings. Ainsworth emphasizes that by shifting from intellectual decision-making to a more intuitive approach, one can reduce stress and experience a more fulfilling life. She draws parallels between this philosophy and her own experiences, such as trusting her instincts on a first date, which led to a meaningful relationship. Ainsworth encourages readers to embrace the feelings of their surroundings and trust their inner knowing, suggesting that this path, although less conventional, leads to a more joyful and authentic life.

Opinions

Ainsworth believes that the intellect often leads to over-thinking, which can result in stress and overwhelm.
She posits that feelings and inner knowing are more reliable guides for decision-making than intellectual analysis.
The author suggests that nature offers wisdom and messages that can help us in our daily lives.
Ainsworth shares the opinion that trusting one's inner feelings can lead to increased confidence and more beautiful experiences.
She advocates for the idea that everything in life gives off a feeling due to the permeation of the God Force.
The essay conveys the belief that decisions made based on feelings are usually the right ones and can lead to magical and positive life changes.
Ainsworth expresses that living from the heart and trusting feelings is a courageous act that goes against societal norms of intellectual decision-making.
She asserts that the journey of trusting one's heart may be daunting, but it is ultimately the best choice one can make in life.

Living from Your Inner Knowing

Day 30: Learning to go from feelings in life instead of from the intellect

Photo by Aleksandr Ledogorov on Unsplash

It was a quiet morning with crisp air. That is what greeted me this morning on my daily walk. We have one area in our garden that is always green, even in the middle of summer. There must be an underground water source there. As I headed toward our planting of mint, I noticed something on the ground. It was a slug with beautiful patterns on it. It is an unusual sighting this time of year, in the drier season. I watched it for a little bit as it moved along slowly. Each time I passed it, it had calmly moved just a little bit further towards the fragrant mint plants. I felt that snail was sending me a message for today. I need to slow down more and to enjoy each part of the path. Another is letting go of old things, old beliefs, and old stories. In its life, the slug is always letting go. I love the message I receive each day from nature as I explore the book The Infinite Self by Stuart Wilde for 100 days.

The journey of going from the intellect into feeling your way through life is one of practice and patience with yourself. It is a daily awareness, a type of mental discipline to trust your inner knowing to guide you to the next step. Using the intellect can lead to constant over-thinking, which then leads to stress and overwhelm. Whenever I trust my inner feelings, I feel more confident in myself, and my days are more beautiful.

Because the God Force permeates everything, everything gives off a feeling. Even inanimate objects give off a feeling. -Stuart Wilde

I noticed that this morning the slug’s message to me was perfect. Yesterday I had been hanging on to old stories. Today my energy felt better. I am on this path to seek the freedom of my spirit, to not cling to any concepts of myself. To accept me as I am and know that I can always trust my feelings to guide me. The energy around me today feels lighter. I feel ready to trust my inner knowing today.

Photo by Maria Shanina on Unsplash

If you operate out of feelings, you’re never really going to have to make any more decisions. Decision-making for most is an intellectual process. Either something feels right and you proceed, or it feels wrong and you don’t proceed. Or, there is a neutral feeling, and you either don’t proceed or you move very slowly and cautiously. -Stuart Wilde

If we look back at all of the choices that we have made, the ones based on feelings were always the right ones. The times where we did trust our inner knowing. Those are the events that are often the most magical, positive and life-changing experiences. When we know in our hearts that something is right, it always is for us. This reminds me of when my husband and I were dating. For our first date, he came across town to pick me up for dinner. I hadn’t ever met him in person before, as we met online. Most people would have told me to just meet him in a public place for safety reasons. However, my inner knowing told me that he was safe and this situation was safe, and it was. It was even more magical when he brought me the gift of a clock for my house on our first date! He had remembered that I needed one!

As you seek the feelings of things, you will gradually be able to replace the intellect. You have to understand that, coming from the intellect, you’re always guessing. It doesn’t matter if all the graphs and charts tell you that this and that is supposed to happen. -Stuart Wilde

Photo by Martin Adams on Unsplash

Whenever I seek feelings of things, I feel much more joy in my heart. I am trusting life as I notice everything around me in nature. Each morning, on my walk, I learn something new. The trees, animals and plants can speak to me as my inner being does. We are growing together on this path of trusting the heart. Trusting your feelings takes a lot of courage. It is the opposite way of most of society. It takes some daily effort to overcome the mind and feel your way through life. It is a path of the unknown, and it can feel daunting. However, it will be the best choice you ever make in your life to live from your heart.

My prayer and intention for you today is that you feel into life. Notice what your heart is telling you. Be aware of nature. What are the signs and signals all around you? How do you feel about today? You have all that you will ever need inside your inner being. Trust your feelings, and there is no over-thinking. You have all of the power inside of you already.

How does life feel to you today?

Trista Signe Ainsworth is a professional organizer with Joyful Minimalism. She helps working women clear the clutter, overwhelm, and shame from their homes and lives so that they can truly live in joy.

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More on this Journey:

Living from Your Inner Knowing

Caring for your Emotions

Day 29: Staying balanced means spending time with your feelings

Embracing Life As Fleeting

Day 28: Viewing everything in life as temporary helps us cherish each day

Keeping Your Energy Fresh

Day 27: We can learn stability by always moving and flowing with life