Are You Ready For Love? Sharpening the saw

Throughout history, many have referred to the concept of sharpening the axe, saw, or sword.  Depending on how far back you are willing to go you can find a fable that correlates to this.  What is more important than who is responsible for the story, is the lesson within the story itself.  I have chosen to use references to an author, public speaker and motivator that I have tremendous respect for, Stephen R. Covey.

Stephen R. Covey's book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People®, refers to this in a manner that is very consistent with the lesson here. 

"Suppose you came upon someone in the woods working to saw down a tree. They are exhausted from working for hours. You suggest they take a break to sharpen the saw. They might reply, " I didn't have time to sharpen the saw, I'm busy sawing!"


Habit 7 is taking the time to sharpen the saw. By renewing the four dimensions of your nature - physical, spiritual, mental and social/emotional, you can work more quickly and effortlessly. To do this, we must be proactive. This is a Quadrant II (important, not urgent) activity that must be acted on. It's at the center of our Circle of Influence, so we must do it for ourselves. "

When you decide that you are ready for a new relationship don't minimize the importance of getting ready, physically, spiritually, mentally and emotionally.  This is particularly important when your previous relationship(s) was/were challenging, painful, and you were left feeling as though you were battered and bruised.  But also when you were the person causing pain to people who tried to share love and affection with you.  Regardless, the elements of renewal include self-awareness, your ability to be pro-active versus re-active and being humble enough to understand where to go for help and guidance.

There are few things more important than your ability to regenerate yourself from the effects of the daily stress of life, to the more complex and significant issues caused by milestones, good and bad.  Your inner  power comes from your resilience.  Resilience is without a doubt, one of my favorite words, it suggests that within each of us is the power to return to our original form, after we have been stretched and pulled by outside forces.  My only wish, is that it could also mean, that you were not merely as you were originally, but that you were new and improved because you are now wiser and more experienced.  Either way, the key is we must understand how important it is to take stock, heal, and prepare ourselves for the next steps.

When we sharpen our axe, or saw, we are preparing to chop down the trees in our forest.  And the sharper our tool, the more effective we will be with the least amount of effort.  As we move forward let's agree to work smarter, and really, who doesn't want the next relationship to be easier than the last.  I do.  I look forward to experiencing the thrill of new love without the fear, frustration and dissapointments of past love.  I am sharpening every tool I possess for just that reason.