Photo by David Clode on Unsplash
One afternoon in July, I was sitting on the back porch. There was a rhythmic click, click, click with accompanying blasts of water, as a sprinkler head turned in place and gave our grass a drink. It’s one of my favorite sounds of summer.
It would be fun to run through the sprinkler.
Where that thought came from, I don’t know. I hadn’t run through a sprinkler since I was a child. But in that moment, I was considering it.
I imagined laughing while getting soaked from head to toe, wearing clothes that were meant to stay dry. I imagined how good the water would feel against my skin in the summer heat. I wondered what Chad, or neighbors, would think if they saw a grown woman playing in the sprinkler.
And then I dismissed the idea.
But not without a tinge of remorse. I told Chad, later that day, I was “this close” to doing it. And I didn’t know why I didn’t.
Fast-forward to today and I’m reading Never Play It Safe by Chase Jarvis. In this book, Jarvis dedicates an entire chapter to intuition, subtitled The Art of Trusting Yourself.
From dictionary.com, intuition is defined as “direct perception of truth, fact, etc., independent of any reasoning process”. It’s that “gut feeling”. It’s automatic and it’s quick.
Jarvis argues to “look to your internal compass to show you the way” in life decisions big and small. And he gives compelling examples of people who have trusted their intuition when it mattered most.
The most dramatic is “Sully” Sullenberger, the commercial airline pilot who made the quick, life-or-death decision to crash-land in NYC’s Hudson River, after a flock of geese crippled both engines on his flight. Knowing there wasn’t enough time to land elsewhere, he disregarded the instructions from air traffic control. And, as a result, all 155 people on board were saved.
This morning, I went on a hike with my friend, Moon. We hike together regularly to get exercise, have conversation, and reap the rewards of being outside in the fresh air.
That’s when another thought came from left-field:
I need to touch a tree.
I couldn’t remember the last time I felt compelled to touch a tree, just for the sake of feeling it under my fingertips.
But this time, with Jarvis’s words in the back of my mind, I didn’t hesitate. I was 10 steps away from the nearest tree and, when I arrived, I placed both hands on its trunk. I glanced at Moon, not being afraid of judgment, and explained what I was doing.
“I needed to touch a tree,” I said.
In an instant, I felt silly, happy, and connected with the earth.
I’m going to hug this tree.
I wrapped both arms around the trunk and gave it a quick hug.
“Tree hugger,” Moon said.
And then we kept moving.
Now…back to the sprinkler.
My question is: who the heck cares what anyone would’ve thought?!?
What other people think about my behavior is their business, not mine.
Had I trusted my intuition, I would’ve experienced childlike joy. And don’t we all need more of that? It could have become a happy memory I reflected on for years to come.
So, the next time you have a gut feeling about doing, or not doing, something, lean in. Listen closely. Don’t be afraid.
Your internal compass is pointing in that direction for a reason.
