#35 - 40 till 40
Confused about this post? Start with the intro - HERE
I am grateful for maps.
I mean this in more ways than the map that helps you to get from point A to point B, although I mean those too. I had this teacher in 7th grade that taught us how to fold a map properly as one of our lessons, I’m not kidding. This dates me, but I’m not sad about it. I’m grateful I grew up in a time where I had to learn how to read and fold a map properly. They are integral skills that I still use today. Spatial reasoning anyone?
The Virgo rising in me has always loved maps. The plotting of points, the organizing of something that is seemingly so disorganized, a way to find my way in and out of places, the perspective it gives and systematization of it. Though I love maps, I don’t particularly like GPS. I use it as little as I can. I also have a very good memory for maps, which has helped me as I have traveled around the world. Knowing which direction a town or city might be in or remembering the name of a random town I saw on a map has helped me relocate myself after many wanderings, especially while driving in foreign countries.
My gratitude for maps extends to mapping systems like the chakra system, the koshas, astrology, ayurveda, enneagram, Myers-Briggs, energy systems, family systems, and all the body systems, among others. These maps have added context to my life and helped me learn about myself. I often hear “I don’t believe in that,” when I mention some of these systems, and my response is always the same, they are not something to believe in, they are tools to use. You don’t have to believe in something to notice the relationship between a point on these maps and something within you. You are not these maps, but you can use the information they glean to support you, learn, and transform. Every map I have encountered in my life has shared valuable information with me that has helped me discern something about myself, and for that I am grateful.
