The ultimate goal of living a life that allows you to answer each of The 3 Life Questions™ with an emphatic “Yes!” is simple yet profound: to experience peace, contentment, and fulfillment.
But how do we get there?
In essence, it’s about learning to live fully, with gratefulness—to find joy not just in grand achievements, but in the magic of the present moment.
Waking Up to Life
It’s no secret that I’ve been deeply influenced by the teachings of Michael Singer and Anthony De Mello, both of whom describe spirituality as the process of “waking up.” This awakening has two key dimensions:
- Waking up to who we truly are—beyond the layers of ego, expectation, and identity. Call it Consciousness, Soul, Atman—it doesn’t matter. What matters is the experience of realizing there’s a deeper, unchanging part of us that simply is.
- Waking up to the mystery and magic of the present moment—the now that holds infinite wonder, if only we pause to notice.
To bring this idea home, let’s add another voice to the conversation—Charles Dickens.
The Magic of “Scrooge Consciousness”
In A Christmas Carol, Ebenezer Scrooge undergoes one of literature’s most famous awakenings. After being confronted by the ghosts of his past, present, and future, Scrooge wakes up—both literally and figuratively—on Christmas morning with an entirely new perspective on life.
He’s giddy with aliveness. He marvels at the snow outside his window. He laughs at himself. He delights in simple acts of kindness. And, most importantly, he begins to focus on giving away the best of who he is, rather than hoarding wealth and status.
“Scrooge Consciousness” is that profound awakening to life’s simple wonders, where even the smallest moments feel infused with magic.
It’s the shift from taking to giving, from expecting to appreciating, from numbness to aliveness.
The Personal Struggle With Awakening
I’ll be honest—living in Scrooge Consciousness doesn’t come naturally to me.
For much of my life, I’ve wrestled with a “glass half empty” mindset. My ego has had a long-standing habit of telling me what Life should deliver in order for me to be happy. And when those demands weren’t met, I experienced the predictable emotions: anger, frustration, and a decades-long battle with depression.
But here’s what’s becoming clearer to me now:
The more I let go of my expectations—the endless list of conditions my ego insists upon—the more space I create for joy. When I stay connected to my True Self, that part of me rooted in unconditional love, I can begin to see the world differently.
Even when life doesn’t go “my way,” I can still find moments of wonder:
- The warmth of sunlight through a window
- A spontaneous laugh with a friend
- The simple act of breathing in and out
This is what it means to “live fully, with gratefulness.” It’s not about life being perfect. It’s about waking up enough to see that life itself—right here, right now—is the miracle.
Your Challenge for the Week
This week, I invite you to step into Scrooge Consciousness.
- Pause Daily: Take five minutes each day to sit quietly and notice the small details around you—the flicker of a candle, the sound of birds, the texture of your coffee mug. Let yourself feel the moment, without rushing past it.
- Release Expectations: Notice when your mind starts listing what should be different—what life, others, or even you should be doing differently. Can you gently let those expectations go, even for a moment?
- Give Freely: Like Scrooge after his awakening, find one simple way each day to give from your heart—whether it’s a kind word, a thoughtful message, or a small act of service.
And finally, ask yourself this question: “What small wonders will I no longer overlook today?”
You may be surprised by the magic that begins to appear.
If you’d like to explore this topic or any of The 3 Life Questions in more depth, schedule a no-obligation, 30-minute conversation here: https://calendar.the3lifequestions.com/lets-get-to-know-one-another.