Unseen Perfection

What you can plan
is too small
for you to live.

What you can live
wholeheartedly
will make plans
enough
for the vitality
hidden in your sleep.

-- David Whyte, House of Belonging

A friend sent David Whyte's poem to me this morning and this part of it leapt off the page and said, "See this is what I've been trying to show you."

I've been trying to plan my way to where I wanted to go, scrambling around trying to make it become a reality.  Yesterday the universe tapped me on the shoulder and said, "Here's perfection ... it was coming your way all along, you just couldn't see it, couldn't believe it." 

Two months ago I fell in love with a house ... a spectacular house ... a house that was a stretch financially but I "bought" it and even posted a picture of the view here.  I flew into action, signing papers, digging up tax returns, speeding down the road toward the goal ... and hit a speed bump.  The inspections didn't come out right, things were wrong at the core of the house.

Shift gears to house #2 ... a wow! house ... incredible rock outcroppings, amazing deck but a true fixer.  A bank-owned property, there was nothing speedy about this process except my own pushing to get it done.  But it was stop and go.  Put in papers and wait.  Put in papers and wait again.  My patience thinned and frustration thickened. 

Two nights ago, out of sheer frustration, I prowled through the MLS listings to see if anything new had shown up and there were a couple of new things and one sounded interesting but there weren't any pictures available.  The next morning the bank finally responded with a counter-offer that was where we had been two weeks ago.  I was frustrated and irritated but ready to accept the offer because I was so tired of the process ... and, after all, it was a wow! house ... or at least it would be after much money and time went into the remodel.

On more of a whim than anything else, I suggested to my agent that we see these other two properties before we did the acceptance paperwork and she agreed.  Enter house #3 ... an aaaahhhhh! house.  Not spectacular, not a wow! but comfortable with six lovely outdoor living areas ... and the price is right and no remodeling necessary.  We turned in an offer on house #3 and it was accepted in 3 hours.

I think I'm going to try a little harder to believe in the unseen perfection that surrounds us. And, remember David Whyte's words, "What you can plan is too small for you to live."