I was on a hike last night with my husband when I lost my traction on some gravel going down hill and gasped for a moment.
As I reached out for his hand to sturdy me, he said, "It's OK.
When you slip it makes you more agile.
" It sounded like one of those pieces of wisdom you receive as a child from a grandparent.
I wondered, but didn't say anything.
I just smiled and said, "that's a great analogy for life".
I can't tell you how many times I've had those moments of "oh no!" as a knee jerk response like when you get a piece of mail that looks like trouble, a bill, a letter from an attorney.
How about when you get a call from someone who usually wouldn't call you unless there's an emergency? Or the neighbor who goes by and is usually stirring up trouble? What I've had to teach myself is, when you bless these things and keep an open mind, they begin to make you more agile, you stop anticipating something bad happening, and you start to become confident everything's going to work out even when it seems you've slipped a little and feel out of control for a moment.
I'll give you a couple of real life examples: Bill Collectors I had a stack of bills piling up from having had an MRI and some physical therapy done due to me having so much chronic pain I was just fed up with every little thing irritating it.
I had been to acupuncturists, chiropractors, and tried about everything you can imagine for years since an accident I'd been in 7+ years ago (and even back to a tailbone incident falling down stairs as a child) and was at wits end after a little recent fender bender had put my body on its defenses again.
Since this fender bender and the MRI were close in proximity, my insurance company had to do an investigation to determine whether it was indeed a chronic condition or directly related to the incident.
It took a very long time for them to get anywhere with it.
First, I did Byron Katie's self-inquiry process with it which freed up any fears I had surrounding their not paying and imagined them saying they were sorry it had taken so long, but everything's fine and the checks had even just been sent out.
Well, I called them, with this spacious feeling in my heart surrounding the matter, and they said, almost verbatim, "We're sorry it's taken so long, but everything has been approved and is getting paid...
in fact, the checks were just sent out yesterday.
" I couldn't believe it! We had another little hiccup along the way a couple months later, but, before I went to make the calls and emails, instead of worrying, I said, "I love you.
" (a quick shortcut I learned from ho'oponopono) and every call and email was friendly, helpful, and expedited.
In fact, people went out of their way to get me in contact with key people.
Andrew Dice Clay The other quick story was that Nate and I were invited to have dinner with some friends of ours we met with on a regular basis when, one night, they said they'd like to introduce us to some of their family members.
One of the male family members was obnoxious.
He sounded like Andrew Dice Clay.
He boasted of how he gets kicked out of places for being boisterous, loud, and antagonistic.
I yawned the whole time which usually indicates either conflict avoidance or transformation of energy (in this case, probably both) and felt completely sapped when we left.
I didn't want to see him again.
So, needless to say, the next time they invited us over, I had this knee-jerk response in my gut.
Ugh.
No.
Then I gave him the benefit of the doubt and realized humor is probably the only way he knows to relate and I bet he had a good heart underneath the abrasive exterior and thought of all the things I liked about his sense of humor and how cool it was our friends trusted us enough to invite them into our group and vice versa (and they really liked him).
So, we went again.
And I have to tell you I saw the most beautiful man that night talk of the most incredible adventures, a brave and courageous heart, tales of integrity and honor, and a light in his eyes (and in the eyes of his wife in response to him) that warmed my heart.
I didn't want to leave.
Now, we're excited to go spend time with them when they come to town.
I could give you SO many examples just like these.
The point? Try to always anticipate good happening.
Bless the situation.
Train your brain to give the benefit of the doubt and see another perspective that's softer.
As soon as you notice a feeling of knee-jerk doom, say, "I love you" to it, welcome it, and ask yourself, "what good could come of this?" and don't be surprised with the miracles that unfold.
You'll learn to expect them instead of problems.
Trust me.
I've seen it enough to know this for certain.
Give it a try.
You won't be let down.
;^)