Today is Labor Day here in the USA. It is a great day to reflect on the meaning of work, labor, and life’s purpose. The picture is of a wall tile in my kitchen. I also have a cup that says “Love the work you do and Do the work you love.” Every day they remind me to be grateful for the freedom I have to make choices in my life and the feelings of security and trust that support my making those choices.

My maternal grandparents left Ireland as teenagers, came to jobs on a local farm/manor house here in western NY. They worked hard; my grandfather later getting a job with the railroad, my grandmother taking in laundry while raising four children. The picture of the elderly man leaning on a shovel with pick nearby was taken on along the roadside near where my grandfather was born in County Antrim. I was struck by how much they looked alike. I also often wonder what my life would have been like if he had stayed in Northern Ireland.

Working the land in places like western NY and Ireland kept laborers connected to Nature. In today’s language they could stay grounded, feel a sense of sovereignty, and work at their own pace even if the days were long and the toil was hard. The Labor movement was born out of factory workers facing very different circumstances: unsafe environment, brutal conditions, long hours of repetitive work with no breaks. I am so grateful to live in a time and a place where I could live life doing soulful work. “Following my Bliss” as Joseph Campbell advised was a choice I could make as a privileged white American and that I choose to make thanks to the spirit of my grandparents.

The other wonderful image that comes to mind when I think of the meaning of work is the iconic silhouette of “The Three Men of Aran”, three sets of legs below a currach (fishing boat). I love this symbol of teamwork. Who we work with is sometimes as important to our growth, well-being, and happiness as what we do, where we work, or what financial rewards we reap. I spent much of my professional life teaching, coaching and consulting in group dynamics, leadership, and organizational change. People would often walk me to the parking lot, sharing their workplace frustrations. My fierce commitment to teaching and writing about soulful work and soulful practices for every day life came from those conversations.

After the “time-out” provided by Covid-19, my hope is that you will have had a chance to reflect on your work, its meaning and what aspects are important to you at the deepest level of your being.

May you have the wisdom to act upon your understanding of your relationship to your work, the motivation to make the adjustments that will bring more ease, joy and balance to your life and the opportunity to find a way to thrive in these changing times.