Hello! It’s been nearly nine months since Issue № 151 of 7 for Sunday went out. There have been many moments where I realized I missed doing the writing— but I simply couldn’t commit to resuming writing weekly. I’m going to continue writing— just not every week. 🙂

The later issues of 7 for Sunday open with a question. That question was written last (after even the title.) On one of the days when I was missing writing, I spun up a new cogitant and made it read every word of every issue. It pointed out that one could explore this publication by entering through the questions that start many of the issues. And then it pointed out that the questions seemed to actually fall into just a small number of themes.

So today, for your reading pleasure I present to you the questions organized into 7 themes.

Presence & Patience

Slowing down, waiting, attending to what’s here.

What is the cost of my own hurry? Despite all my ongoing efforts to simplify, I’m still hurrying too often each week. My mind has a tendency towards greed — not for wealth, but the compulsion to fill every gap with something. Still hurrying — № 151

How do I relate to discomfort without letting it trap me? The summer heat wears me down. It slows everything, making the smallest effort feel heavier. My instinct is to retreat — and that makes for a downward spiral: the less I move, the less I want to move. Discomfort — № 150

When even flexibility wears you out, what’s left? With the power of hindsight I can see there was an age of fire — a long period of trying to carve a path through the world. Then the age of water: flowing, accommodating. But now, something lighter still. The age of air. The age of air — № 144

Can we simply wait? There’s something wonderful in the moments we don’t understand. I always feel a tension to hurry through the waiting, as if ambiguity was somehow a threat. The courage to wait — № 138

Can we choose attentiveness? I’ve spent my lifetime seeking: knowledge, control, achievement, clarity. Finally, I began to wonder — and have subsequently become convinced — that life is not about seeking. It’s about noticing what’s already here. This is enough — № 137

What is the role of patience? I’ve been trying to stop thinking about the things I didn’t do, and instead think about the things I will do now. Stop rushing through the current moment — the next moment is not guaranteed. Festina lente — № 134

What if the distractions of imagination are invitations to return to serenity? I spend enormous amounts of time following the train of thought which begins with, “What if…” But I’m not thinking about catastrophes — I’m just endlessly distracted by things I think of which I could do. The opposite of striving — № 131

Acceptance & Surrender

Letting go of control, making peace with uncertainty.

How do I live fully when nothing is truly under my control? I’ve often said I use systems and structure as a way to multiply my efforts. And that’s true, but I’ve learned that the real reason is that I’m afraid. I’m afraid of uncertainty.Evaporation — № 149

How much of my life is shaped by choice — and how much is an illusion of control? Twice I didn’t act upon his invitation. I had no idea the second time was my last chance. Then he died. We make countless decisions every day. Some seem trivial and some seem important, but often it’s only clear in hindsight. The line — № 145

Is this tension serving me? If you’re just reacting to whatever life throws at you, then any armchair philosophizing about life’s purpose is, frankly, pointless. But if you have some slack — and let’s be honest, you do — then the question is… The right tension — № 143

How does acceptance transform us? In today’s world, rarely is anyone actually listening. Everything is intentionally distracting. Everything clamors for our attention. That makes what should be the ‘simple’ act of listening into something profound. Acceptance — № 141

Is it clarity or control? There is a fine line between being organized because you believe that’s how you can best achieve your goals, and because you’re in love with checklists, systems, and processes. An exasperated, “just look at all this stuff I have to do,” doesn’t make the situation clear. On rising from the ashes — № 126

Growth & Transformation

How we change, what effort means, when to push and when to stop.

What transforms raw effort into ethical action? There was a time, not too long ago, when I had the work-ethic, grit, determination dial twisted to 11. I believe I understand the error, and sometimes I actually feel that a lower setting would be better. Reformed hustle — № 148

Is stopping failure, or wisdom? A friend once said, “Life is full of compromises which you cannot avoid. So don’t compromise with yourself.” But if aspiring was our true fulcrum, you’d be on your throne already. Learning to stop — № 147

Can I grow without clarity? I struggle to acknowledge my progress without big-picture clarity. I get a ton done, but it’s a blur. I grope for clarity, hoping it might empower me to continue. Ambiguity — № 146

Where does real progress begin? So much is written and discussed about history: recording it, studying it, learning (or not) from it. But why don’t more people talk about each of our personal histories? Personal progress — № 139

What fuels lasting personal change? I’m endlessly fascinated by motivation, habits and processes. I’ve realized that motivation, habits and processes are related to three other things I write often about: Discovery, reflection, and efficacy.Motivation is only the beginning — № 133

How can I transform short-term inspiration into long-term change? I’m fixated on trying to get consistently good at converting short-term ideas and inspiration, into long-term life changes. “Eat better,” is easy most of the time. Until I get stressed out. Help thyself — № 122

How can we develop ourselves throughout the year, without succumbing to rigid, goal-oriented resolutions? At one point in my journey, I actively rebelled against New Year’s resolutions. But resolutions stem from our desire for personal growth, and I don’t want to abandon that. The issue isn’t with personal development itself, but with the rigidity. A new story — № 117

Balance & Enough

The tension between striving and rest, sufficiency, self-imposed demands.

How can one find peace and balance in a life perpetually filled with self-imposed tasks and external demands? “I have more things to do, than I can possibly ever finish.” Decades ago I wore, “I’m busy!” as a badge of honor. I proudly rushed in to help. I was thinking it was terrific to be seen as a savior. Being enough — № 116

How can we balance the drive for improvement and creation, with the values of clarity and intentionality? My drive is to add things. To add features, capabilities, new options, entire projects. Improvement through addition. Forward progress through consensus building. Of course, you see where this is going: There is another path. Clarity — № 114

How can we find a sustainable balance between striving for achievement and embracing rest, while addressing our underlying beliefs about worth and productivity? A weakness for me is that with each day, I don’t know when to stop striving. Sometimes I fail to plan; I spend the whole day chasing the next, immediate thing. Sometimes I plan to tackle too much. The balance — № 112

Meaning & Purpose

Why we do what we do, what fulfillment looks like, identity.

What makes a fulfilling life? It’s a mistake to continue doing something solely to extend the streak of doing. Longevity can be a sign of value, but it isn’t inherently valuable. Eudaimonia — № 140

Can we create meaning through language, learning, and daily practice? The search for meaning is clearly universal. It may take us a few decades before we begin, but we do eventually take that first step in our search. In search of meaning — № 136

Shall we cherish dignity in our high-tech world? Everything is fun, until one’s expectations are crushed. I thought I was getting the convenience of online shopping for things that were previously unavailable. Instead, the local stores closed. Cherishing dignity — № 135

What transforms teaching from a role into a calling? As I prepare to coach I am repeatedly finding myself lost in thought. Thinking about coaching, would be great. It’s the “lost in” part which has been troubling me. Purpose and connection — № 130

Will I say, ‘Thank you’? Think about your perception of time: We remember our past. We have ideas about how our life might unfold in the future. We understand that it is, currently, now. We somehow sense that time passes — that time, somewhat like the water of a river, goes past us. Gifts to myself — № 129

Have you found your one thing? The secret to life really is one thing, and everything else don’t mean shit. Character can be created on the job only when we can see that there’s an intelligible, justifiable relation between past effort, learned skills and present reward. One thing — № 127

Can we navigate fulfillment, work, and societal expectations to find a meaningful life? About three weeks ago, the celestial dance carried me through a solstice. Here in the northern hemisphere, it was the shortest day of the year. The general weather lags a couple of months behind that celestial dance. Navigation — № 119

How can I judge whether the path I am on is the right one for me, a path that has meaning, purpose, and heart?The first way I can think to judge is to pay attention to my mornings: It’d be a great sign if I’m popping out of the ol’ comfy covers excited to do the current stuff. It turns out that I am. The awakening — № 115

Creativity, Writing & Insight

The inner practice of making, seeing clearly, the creative struggle.

Can we invite insight instead of chasing it? I’m struck often by interesting relationships between how words are spelled and their meaning. Taken literally, “insight” is about apprehending some new idea. But for some reason, we consider vision and thinking so closely related that the word for the new thinking is just the words for being seen. Sight — № 142

Is playfulness the font of humor and creativity? I was recently thinking about humor, and how we intermingle two different things when we use the word. We say: One has a good sense of humor, and one is of good humor. The first refers to the person who can make others laugh, while the second is the person who generally approaches things positively. Seriously — № 132

What is inspiration? I’ll bet you think inspiration is important; I certainly do. I realized that I don’t have a clear understanding of what inspiration actually is. A friend has died unexpectedly, and I felt they were inspirational. And then I started to wonder why, exactly. Permission to continue — № 128

How do I write what matters? I am aware that the Muse gives me bits of ideas. I feel I have a responsibility to be prepared for those gifts. If my surroundings are distracting, or if my mind is overwhelmed, I’ll drop all else to address those concerns. Writing matters — № 124

Why do I continue to write regularly despite the challenges and resistance it entails? Often, I wish that I could figure out why I write these things each week. Often, I put off starting, until much later than I’d prefer. Here I am again this week, in the proverbial last hour. It’s a Sisyphean labor. Writing uphill — № 113

How can solitude and intentional detachment from distractions help us cultivate creativity and find clarity in our choices? Sweet, sublime, solitude. Flowers open in solitude. Butterflies emerge from their chrysalis in solitude. We find room for ourselves in solitude. Solitude and detachment — № 111

Identity & Knowledge

Who we are, what we know, how we narrate our experience.

Why do we overlook the age of innocence to focus on the dramas of loss and redemption? The aphorism, “What once was lost, now is found” implies a preamble: What once was known, was then lost. There are three acts to that story, and for as long as I’ve known about it I’ve only focused on acts 2 and 3. Innocence — № 121

Of what value are stories, and how do they shape our identity? As each new year begins, I start thinking about writing a list of the things I’ve learned. In recent years I don’t even open a document to begin typing; I have learned a few things. Stories in the end — № 120

How do we know? Of course my default point of view is anthropocentric. I am a human being. As such, I have a super-power called the Theory of Mind: In my mind, I understand that there are other minds completely separate from mine. Anthropocentric — № 123

How can a guiding word or phrase shape a person’s life over time? In 2012 I began selecting a phrase or a word to use as a guide for the coming year. A friend showed me there’s a word for such a guide: Cynosure. Cynosure — № 118

How does space shape us? This morning I was jotting some thoughts about resistance. I’ve learned that it’s difficult to try to force myself. What works is when I have a clearly delineated space for the task at hand. Waiting for cephalopods — № 125

Until next time, thanks for reading.

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