Our Calling

Many of us often find our calling in the most unexpected places. It is almost as if we stray so far away from it, when we finally get there, we're met with both awe and shock. Sometimes a deep grief accompanies this, grief for time lost wondering and waiting; time spent searching for something more. Why is it so hard to follow our path, to pursue the things that light our soul on fire and give us a reason to live?

Could it be that from the moment we utter our first words we're bombarded with the constant questioning of: "What do you want to be when you grow up?" Learning to respond with whatever would get the most recognition and praise. We quickly go from answers like "artist" and "musician" to "aerospace engineer" and "financial manager" And in searching for other's approval in our answers, maybe that is where we begin to lose our way.

Now that many of us are grown, we continue to ask ourselves the same question "What do I want to be when I grow up?" still not knowing the answer. After all, how does one find their life calling while living in a society focused on money and status as the true markers of success? In a culture of never ending consumerism? How can we find those things that set our souls on fire when we are simply trying to survive?

Maybe we find it in a collective community filled with love and connection. One where we're not focused on status or money but finding ways to not only survive this capitalistic hellscape, but demolish it and build a new reality from the ground up. Maybe, just maybe, our calling is not a job or a career, but how we show up for others in this world; and the mark we leave behind.

By: Caitlyn Rhorer, MSW, LSW