Each day I marvel at the people that I am in contact with and the situations that might have brought us together. Each interaction is like an introduction to a new friend. Even so-called "old" friends are met with a fresh perspective at each interaction. As we progress through our lives, our days, and our moments, we are all growing and changing. Even if that change is subtle, we are changing.
Each moment brings with it a new awareness of our own ability to make decisions and take actions. Those decisions are based upon cumulative experiences and intuition. So, if every moment allows us to grow, then the next time we see a good friend, we are a slightly different person. Perhaps a bit more refined in our thinking. Perhaps a bit more cynical. Either way, to an observant friend, we are someone slightly new to meet.
Likewise, we gain a new insight with each interaction we have. That insight might be a lesson that we keep getting presented with, or it might simply be an example of a purely joyful moment. Either way, I believe that there are no accidental encounters or relationships. Even relationships that end poorly (i.e. divorce or broken friendships) are part of our lives for a reason. These types of relationships help us to better trust and love ourselves at some point. Once we go through the suffering phase of the relationship and enter into the healing phase, we are apt to recognize our own strengths and abilities. We can then take those lessons and apply them to current, and future, relationships to avoid a recurrence of the poorly experienced one.
It goes without saying that our joyful relationships provide us with much learning as well. These types of encounters are ones we seek to replicate with others.
Our challenge, as maturing individuals, is to remain open to the possibility that each interaction we have during the day has a purpose for us; that is contains a "teachable" moment that is critical to our growth at that moment. It is by holding this challenge in your heart that you will be able to endure less-than-pleasant people and carry the joy from the better interactions. There are no accidents. We are meant to learn from each experience, and be there for others to learn from. So be alert, grateful and enjoy the journey.
Namaste',
Michelle H.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Monday, August 8, 2011
Too much chasing...
The other day I was in the garden and I saw a very cute little toad. You know the kind that shows up in front of you when you are about to take a step, and stares at you. Well, I thought it would be fun to pick up the toad and stare back at him a bit. After much chasing and direction changing, I finally caught him. I scooped him up gently in my hands and stared at him. His response to that was to promptly pee all over my hand! Obviously not what I had hoped would happen once I had achieved my goal of catching him. (Having done this many times in the past as a child, I should have remembered that this would be the eventual outcome.)
This caused me to think about how often in life we chase things. Dreams of careers, relationships, and other things that we think are going to make us happy, or turn out a certain way. It is the "if only" syndrome. If only I could meet that guy, life will be better. If only I could get a promotion, life will be better. This "if only" game goes on for quite some time, until we realize that the end result is not always as we had envisioned it. The promotion comes with more work and time away from the family. The great guy might come with huge emotional baggage.
The other issue with all this chasing of "if only" dreams, is that while we are so busy chasing, we look past the blessings that are right here in our lives; those that are already present for us. When we slow down and stop chasing for a while, we are able to see more clearly the path that we are already on. We are more able to accept the facts of our lives at this very moment, knowing that they will change as things move along. They are going to do that on their own and we do not have to chase them in order to accomplish movement.
Not all chasing results in negative consequences, but by chasing, we miss the benefits of truly experiencing the journey along the way. Keeping your eye on the prize is okay, but we need to not have tunnel vision in order to truly appreciate the value of the end goal once reached. So instead of chasing a dream, take a journey to it and recognize each step of the way as the blessing that it is. Happy travelling.
Namaste',
Michelle H.
This caused me to think about how often in life we chase things. Dreams of careers, relationships, and other things that we think are going to make us happy, or turn out a certain way. It is the "if only" syndrome. If only I could meet that guy, life will be better. If only I could get a promotion, life will be better. This "if only" game goes on for quite some time, until we realize that the end result is not always as we had envisioned it. The promotion comes with more work and time away from the family. The great guy might come with huge emotional baggage.
The other issue with all this chasing of "if only" dreams, is that while we are so busy chasing, we look past the blessings that are right here in our lives; those that are already present for us. When we slow down and stop chasing for a while, we are able to see more clearly the path that we are already on. We are more able to accept the facts of our lives at this very moment, knowing that they will change as things move along. They are going to do that on their own and we do not have to chase them in order to accomplish movement.
Not all chasing results in negative consequences, but by chasing, we miss the benefits of truly experiencing the journey along the way. Keeping your eye on the prize is okay, but we need to not have tunnel vision in order to truly appreciate the value of the end goal once reached. So instead of chasing a dream, take a journey to it and recognize each step of the way as the blessing that it is. Happy travelling.
Namaste',
Michelle H.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
