The Meaning of Life

Hi All! This is a long one...hope you find time to enjoy it... :-)

The sun is setting behind the palm trees. The very thin elderly man who has been raking the rice paddy in front of me all day long is heading home. I just finished a plate of steam veggies that I bought from the market, and now my feet are resting on the side of my balcony, as I ponder the reality that I will be flying away from here in 8 days…and as I am deep in reflection on my five months of life here in Bali.

Lets go back in time for a moment…when I was seven and spent a week in the hospital after being diagnosed with diabetes, I fell in love with the idea of being someone who’s career was dedicated to helping others feel better. Resultantly, my desire to become a doctor was born. For the next thirty years, this seed of desire never stopped growing, albeit often only lurking in the back of my mind. Although I followed a wavering path…graduating from college with a business degree after attending four different colleges, then backpacking around Australia and New Zealand for six months, selling pizza in Italy for three months, selling Prozac for three years, and then selling insulin pumps for 2 years…I never let my childhood dream drift very far from my mind. Once I discovered the existence of a holistic minded med school, my wavering path ended. I committed myself to the 5-year program, and at the age of 35, I became Dr. Jody Stanislaw.

As you all well know, I was then drawn to move to Thailand…where I worked for eleven months…then left in December to come to Bali…and have been here writing a book ever since. (And doing a lot of other wonderful things here too ☺ ) As I sit here on my balcony, enjoying the bright pink and orange paint strokes in the sky left by the setting sun, I am acutely aware of the uniqueness of my path. Almost every girlfriend I can think of is likely in this moment, finishing work and/or making dinner for her husband and children. I can’t think of anyone else I know from high school or college who is likely sitting by themselves, in a tropical environment, unemployed but doing fine living on $20/day, relaxing on their balcony, surrounded by rice paddies and palm trees…and thus, I’ve been pondering, “How the hell did I end up here?” and, “I wonder what’s in store for me next?”

For the past thirty years, my focus and drive was always to some degree focused on becoming a physician. Being someone who always sets their sights high, I had decided becoming a doctor was the only answer to having a career dedicated to helping others. My focus was single pointed…I was going to achieve the highest-ranking career within the field of healthcare; anything else I deemed would be a copout. Then I did it for a year…sat in an office for 8 hours a day, handing out advice on supplements and herbs and nutrition…and I realized this is not what I want to do. I had never actually thought about the actual day to day practice of being a physician…sitting inside all day long, rather sedentarily…I had only focused on my idea of wanting to be someone who helped others improve their health and enjoy their life.

So I did it for a year and quit. And now I’ve been here in Bali, with more free time in a week than most of my friends have in a year...which has allowed me more time than I’ve ever spent in my life to think about how I can be a doctor outside of the box; to be someone dedicated to helping others feel better, and at the same time loving what I do. So here is what I know I love to do: I love facilitating groups. I love leading movement classes…dance, yoga, exercise. I love leading meditation. I love having discussions on spirituality. I love teaching others about the body and the importance of good nutrition. I love giving lectures on health. I love to meet and interact with people. I love to inspire others to improve their health. I love a dynamic work environment. I love travel….

"Dream lofty dreams, and as you dream, so shall you become. Your vision is the promise of what you shall one day be; your ideal is the prophecy of what you shall at last unveil"....James Allen


I believe each one of us have unique gifts we are meant to share with the world. I believe that what life is asking each one of us is to become clear on what our respective gifts are, and then dedicate ourselves to giving them to the world the best we can, no matter the doubts and fears we may have about pursuing our deepest desires. Living life like this is a win-win: when we are living out our greatest gifts is when we are most satisfied, happy, peaceful, and joyful; when we are living out our greatest gifts, the world around us is optimally benefiting as well…everyone wins! And everyone is happy!

"It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that things are difficult."...by Imnot Sure

With this realization, I am dedicated to living out my greatest gifts. The vision I have for this thus far is to be a guest lecture at various health events, lead group discussions on health, lead movement classes….with my goal being to lead my own health retreats around the world. How am I going to carry this out? The same way all big visionaries carry out their dreams…one step at a time.

"If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours. " ...Henry David Thoreau

Speaking of having an abundance of time to ponder life, I’ve also made another realization…I’ve realized the purpose of life. I’m serious. Growing up in the high success driven city of ritzy Bellevue, it was clear to me that the most important things in life were to have a professional job, make lots of money, look beautiful and stylish always, have a gorgeous home, be accepted by and acceptable to society…and basically make sure I had my shit together at all times. After my thirty-six years here on earth, I’ve realized this is all…bull shit.

I think I would’ve loved pursuing a career as a fulltime yoga instructor. I haven’t made much money in the past few years but I think I’m getting along pretty fabulously given the fact that I’ve been chillin’ here in Bali for months. I can’t remember the last time I put makeup on or bought a new outfit but you know what, I don’t really care. I have a gorgeous home…I just happen to have a renter living in it, which is cool because she is paying for my mortgage, as well as a nice chunk of my monthly student loan payment, thank you very much. I certainly haven’t always had my shit together at all times, but that’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard…no one I know has….nor are we supposed to.

"We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements in life, when all we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about."...Charles Kingsley

So what is the purpose of life as I see it now? For all of us to be the best person we can be. Life is never really about whatever event is going on at any particular moment….be it if we achieve a goal or not, become ‘successful’ or not (whatever that means), experience a divorce, a health challenge, get laid off, … Whatever is going on is simply an opportunity to strengthen being the best version of ourselves. As I look at my life…diabetes has taught me the importance of making health a priority, perseverance, diligence, discipline. Having divorced parents has taught me independence, flexibility, the importance of healthy communication. Being single has given me time to discover who I am without the influence of another, patience, and a level of appreciation for my future significant other that will make him the luckiest husband in the world. That’s it. Nothing on the outside really matters. Its all about being the best version of myself, no matter what life brings me.

But I'm humble..."The person who thinks he has found the ultimate truth is wrong."...Joseph Campbell

Yet, with this purpose in life, one can never lose. Lost your job? Cool! Its great practice for strengthening one’s faith, patience, and diligence. Car get wrecked? Cool! Great practice for letting go of material things and being happy anyway. Everything in life is just a teacher…endless opportunities for us to polish our characters.

Now, having said all of this, it might sound like I’m all blissed out, skipping around like a peace child from the 70’s. Well, that’s not exactly the case. My old goals…the desire for money, the success, the good looks…die hard. I often feel like a referee, making sure the opposing voices of the old and the new inside my head stay well behaved and don’t get too out of control and make me go crazy. For example, one day I can hear, “Oh my! More wrinkles! I must do something to stop this!” So then my wise voice chips in and says, “Hey Jode. You don’t look 25 anymore because you’re 36. Its okay if you have a few wrinkles. Let go of the past. You are a beautiful person, inside and out!”

So as I sit here by myself on my balcony…now in the pitch dark and with my ears filled by all the sounds of the nighttime creatures singing their songs…I am being given the opportunity to fill myself with gratitude…gratitude for this time to reflect, for the warm fresh air, for the food in my belly, for safety, for my ability to type and write and think, for my comfy bed calling my name... How about you? What opportunity is life presenting to you right now? I’d love to hear about it…IN PERSON! when I’m back in Seattle in 23 days!

Love to you all,
Dr. J