Lifting the Fog of Indecision

A foggy spring day in the Sangres

Weariness can occur as a result of thinking we know but not knowing that causes all sorts of indecision. Patrece on behalf of P Systems (PS 52 Series 11 If So, What Now? Week 31) www.p-systemsinc.com

Earlier this week, the words above landed on me like a bright ray of sunshine breaking through fog. This week’s PS 52 landed in my inbox right on time, adding clarity to my morning journaling and connecting the dots of energy and indecision.

My early morning observation started with awareness that when I speak of ‘my energy’ (as in ‘my energy has been really low’) I separate myself from the pure, raw energy that we all create with/from. Yep, I know, that’s not possible to actually do, but I had one heck of a mental construct supporting my illusion.

I was the victim of my ‘low energy’. I’d been experiencing a sense of feeling scattered, unfocused, and unable (or perhaps unwilling) to exert my will. I felt tired. I remembered hearing Gregge Tiffen share his practice of speaking the words ‘let the energy flow through me’ to energize action. THAT felt like an invitation to life and living fully. I felt an internal energetic shift (it’s truly challenging not to write ‘my energy shifted’ here, but I’m clear that I hold no ownership of energy) head to heart to toes.

I felt gratitude for the awareness of what seemed to be deepening into my bones. I was ready to bring on the list of projects and to-do’s so I could focus and take action. I had new clarity about energy and a reminder that it’s my job to direct it. Onward!

But before I dove in, this week’s PS 52 landed in my box, offering even greater clarity. What I’d labeled as ‘my low energy’, weariness if you will, was (at least in part) the effect of not making clear, intentional decisions to take action.  Indecision was leading me to meander wearily through many days, scattering my attention, and, if I was ‘lucky’, accomplishing a few tasks in the process.

I (re)discovered that when I do make clear, intentional decisions, the action (mostly) comes easily. The energy flows through me from one action to the next.  One decision paves the way for another. A course of action becomes clearer. My sense of ‘low energy’ dissipates. My will is strengthened.

I’m feeling deeply grateful and blessed for being shown this connection. And, I’m under no illusion that my new awareness is a ‘magic pill’ or ‘silver bullet’. I’m betting I’ll have days where I simply want to pull the covers over my head to rest. I’m sure to experience days where the path doesn’t seem so clear and choices seem hard. I aim to allow such foggy days to be and to bring to them my curiosity about what they have to offer, for surely they too have purpose. The energy flowing through me is here for me. And, it’s here for you. Let it flow! Let us flow!

And, as she always does, the sun breaks through!

A Reflection on Awareness

Life is awareness. Gregge Tiffen (The Journey Continues: A Taste of Devotion – April, 2010)

Consciousness equals awareness. … When you begin to enjoy life, you begin to learn, but you can’t learn under pressure or negativity. … Consciousness sees everything as joy and harmony. Gregge Tiffen (Open Secrets: The Hidden Worth of New Wealth – April, 2011)

I’m drawing a blank this morning as I reflect on and open to what wants to be shared this week. Sometimes when I’m not aware of the topic as I begin my day, our morning walk calls it forth. Not on this day.

While I appreciate the emptiness and spaciousness of not knowing, I yearn to honor this weekly commitment and to be in the rhythm that’s evolved since I launched ‘The Zone’. It’s Thursday, and that’s blog day in my world.

Early this morning as I began to read and think about the post, the quotes above from Gregge Tiffen drew my attention. I typically see a connection to some experience I’ve had or observation I’ve made and the post flows from there. However, this day there’s a gap between my experiences and Gregge’s wisdom. What awareness am I missing? Surely that holds the key.

Late last week, I traveled to visit a friend to celebrate a new year, the beginning of the last year of my seventh decade on the planet (you do the math!).  I scheduled a couple activities, had a list of things I wanted to do, and trusted the trip would unfold perfectly. It did, although not exactly as planned.

The weather forecast (high wind and snow in the mountains) along with an awareness that my energy was lagging on the day before we planned to meet friends for a hike in the mountains, led me to suggest an alternative. That choice worked perfectly for all, the canines who got to run, romp and get plenty dirty and for their peeps who took great joy in observing the purity of their play. Once again, Cool Hand Luke fulfills his role as teacher, having much fun in the process!

Other activities, including time out to rest, fell beautifully into place. I was honored to help a friend make some adjustments to the beautiful labyrinth (a complex, heart-shaped one with amazing energy!) she recently built. We laughed, talked, and enjoyed great food and a bit of March Madness with another friend. We shopped, discovering an unannounced sale just getting underway (a sale we would have missed had we kept to the original plan). I departed at a perfect time to miss heavy urban traffic and enjoy and easy drive home.

It’s easy to grasp life’s joy and harmony when life seems to be going our way.  It’s not so easy to trust that all is well and to look for the harmony when life throws us curveballs. And, yet, I’m discovering more and more that life is about just that: awareness not just of conditions that we’re a part of, but awareness of what consciousness knows as the perfect unfolding of our lives in all their conditions and forms.

Our human task as we learn to navigate our bodies through life on this physical plane is to remember what consciousness knows:  joy and harmony are present in the very essence of life. We do that step by step, day by day, experience by experience. Another week, another blank filled in. Awareness. Life.  Joy. Harmony. Color me grateful!

Make Every Day NEW!

Green grass, green leaves, and a fascinating museum in Biloxi , MIssissippi

Nature is always moving forward and manifesting that which is truly new!  … By failing to make an experience new, we recycle ourselves into stunted growth patterns. By making such choices, we fall out of synchronicity with the Universe and produce boredom instead of development.  Gregge Tiffen (It’s Springtime: Flow With the Power of Nature – March, 2007)

I just returned from the warmer climates of Mississippi and Texas where spring is popping out in all her glory: green grass, green leaves, colorful camellias and azaleas in bloom and even a few early bluebonnets along a Texas roadway.

It was good to leave the snowy landscape and daily tasks of winter behind even though I love the cold, the snow and find joy and satisfaction in living at 8000 feet. Yes, I did miss Cool Hand Luke who stayed behind.

When I was invited to make the trip, I was a little wary. Who would care for Luke and the house? Did I want to step into the hassles of travel?  What about  _____?

Despite my reservations (or perhaps, excuses), I felt a deep, strong nudge to say ‘yes’. I yielded to that guidance, and the experiences along the way made me grateful that I did.

Starting with my decision to ride the bus and rail to the Denver airport, each day held new experiences. In Mississippi, I met new people and was treated to the best in southern hospitality and cuisine. I walked on and later drove along the beach, discovered new artists, enjoyed colorful Mardi Gras decorations galore, and saw many remnants of Hurricane Katrina, the deadly storm that devastated much of the Gulf coast in 2005.

The Texas leg reconnected me with family and a friend from college that I don’t see often. On a mission to savor some great Texas barbeque, I visited the small town where I worked in my first post-college job. The small ‘joint’ I remembered had moved and expanded, but the rustic ambiance and amazing quality remained four decades later. As we drove away (stuffed and happy), I saw a ‘municipal park’ sign and rediscovered the city park that I helped build in that first job. The park too has grown and changed, but the beauty of nature remains its centerpiece. I found new in the old.

When it was time to head home, I was full and ready to return to the mountains I love. In experiencing the new (including the new in the old), I was reminded to make each day’s tasks a new experience – EVERY day.

I’ll recycle paper, glass, plastics, cans and such, but not the experiences that make my life, MY LIFE. While Luke and I frequently walk the same paths, I aim to notice what is new, what is different each day. How much snow has melted? How does the earth feel under my feet? Where is Luke roaming?  When I build a fire each morning, I do my best to remember that, when I listen deeply, each piece of wood lets me know when it’s ready to burn. Each fire, each day has a different character.

I aim to put the same attention and intention on EVERY task I undertake and event I engage in. Sometimes I speed up and forget and find myself out of sorts and out of sync, gentle reminders to slow down and make what’s familiar new.

If you find yourself weary, bored or out of sorts this week, pause and consider ‘how can I make this new?’

Enter here for GREAT barbeque in Lockhart, Texas

The Courage to Sleep

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie …

… we wouldn’t go to sleep each night if we weren’t willing to give ourselves over to the protection of the universal flow of energy and give up our human concerns in favor of the sleep of the innocent. Patrece on behalf of P Systems (PS52, Series 11, Week 21)

I love this idea linking innocence and courage (or at least an absence of fear) to sleep. Upon reflection, it makes sense to look at laying our head on the pillow each night in this way: trusting the universe enough to let go. We rest. We sleep. At least that’s the design: end a cycle, rest, begin again.

I’m blessed to sleep really well almost every night. It’s my practice to fall asleep in a sea of gratitude (actually, in my world it’s more like a dense forest of gratitude, or sometimes a prairie of gratitude grasses gently swaying in the breeze). I create this field by saying ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you for this day’ as soon as my head meets the pillow. Many nights that’s the last awareness that I have: feeling and expressing gratitude to me (for my choices, my learning, my body, my awareness, my care), to my environment (my home, Cool Hand Luke, nature’s beauty and her messages, the flora in these woods, the creatures who made their home here long before me – and who, mostly, graciously share), to the infinite Universe for its order underlying the chaos of this school, Planet Earth, and for the guides that gently support me along the way.

Sometimes I linger and make it through the entire list. Sometimes I chat with my body, reminding ‘it’ (that would of course be me) of its ability to guide me in showing what it needs as well as to heal. I tell it that I do my best to listen … and, that ultimately I’m in charge. The cells are listening and I want to make amends for any conflicting, contradictory, or confusing input I may have put forth during the day.

Ending a cycle, letting go is like that, offering a time for course correction and redirection. What a gift to stop, rest, and begin again.

In a world where we so often strive to control, it can be challenging to surrender to ‘the sleep of the innocent’. I love that phrase, don’t you? Take a moment to say it out loud to yourself. Give it a moment to sink in. When you lay your head on the pillow, imagine entering into that protected, sacred space. Trust that in sleep, as an important part of healthy living, you are protected.

I look to Luke for inspiration in this regard (he’s in the sleep of the innocent just behind my chair as my fingers fly across the keyboard). Ever alert and using all his senses when awake, he just as naturally and easily curls up and is fast asleep. Guru!

If you live in the camp of bragging that you don’t need much sleep, think again and do a bit of research on its importance. If sleep doesn’t come easily, begin to practice gratitude (‘count your blessings instead of sheep’ as an old song says) and gently remind yourself that in sleep, the protection of the Universe is yours. It IS safe to let go, end the cycle of this day, knowing that you will begin again tomorrow.

Winter’s Blanket in the Woods

The Power of Giving Thanks

Sunset on another beautiful day in the Sangres

The power of giving thanks gives life its vitality! The power of giving thanks comes through your awareness that you are always in a position to receive all the elements the Universe has to offer. Everything is available to you.  Gregge Tiffen (The Power of Giving Thanks, November, 2007)

 Several Thanksgivings ago, sitting quietly by the fire on a cold morning, I began to write in my journal. The words that came surprised me and took me to an unexpected place: gratitude for being me.  As I ease into Thanksgiving Day 2018, I remember all that I have to be grateful for.

 I’m grateful that these words, penned three years ago still ring as true in my heart today as they did on that cold morning.

 I am grateful for how I live my life, the choices I make, the insight and curiosity I experience, my love of quiet and of nature’s beauty. I’m grateful that I take reasonably good care of myself. I’m grateful that I take time to ease into the day and enjoy the morning quiet with Luke curled up near-by. I’m grateful for my introspection and for how I see the world unfolding perfectly in this human experiment/experience despite events that are horrific beyond my understanding.

 I’m grateful for how I’ve faced the challenges in my life, even those events where in hindsight I saw a different way for me to be. Each offered a gift and I did my best to accept it.

 I’m grateful that I enjoy my own company as well as being in the company of others. Both are so very important, yet we humans so very often shun being alone for fear of being lonely, forgetting that in our aloneness we hear Your voice and feel Your presence.

 Thank You for always being with me/in me. Thank YOU for allowing and guiding me to be me. I feel so close You, God, in these quiet moments and I am so very grateful.

 Thankfulness and gratitude are often expressed for things external to us – our family, our work, our homes, our pets, our friends.  Yes, I am grateful, deeply grateful, for these many, many blessings in my life.  This week I’m especially grateful for Cool Hand Luke Skywalker as we and our annual ‘anniversary’ hike to celebrate his adoption eight years ago.

 When we give thanks for being who we are, we tap into the vitality of life. That vitality includes deep peace and the personal satisfaction of allowing myself to express gratitude for me.

 For those here in the U.S., as you list what you’re grateful for this week include gratitude for being you. And, if the Thanksgiving holiday isn’t on your national calendar, take a moment to be grateful for the same. In whatever form you give thanks, may it bring you peace, joy, love and all that your heart desires.

Good Afternoon to you too!

An Avalanche of Gratitude

Grateful Every Day to Live in this Beauty!

Dear God, I sit quietly in appreciation for You as the Source of omnipotent Abundance manifested everywhere through every thing and every one. I give thanks, albeit too infrequently, to You as the Source that brings people and events into my life at exactly the right time and place. Gregge Tiffen (The Power of Giving Thanks – November, 2007) 

So begins Gregge Tiffen’s letter to God in his November, 2007 booklet, one of five years of monthly booklets, each a potent mystical musing containing guidance on navigating life on this planet from a practical metaphysical perspective.

That short opening paragraph prompted my awareness of two important things. First, give thanks more often. Heck, I aim to make gratitude a way of life. Gregge’s words also prompted deep gratitude for the people in my life.

There’s little, if any, question that evoking feelings of gratitude positively impacts our health and well-being.  A quick Google search yields hundreds of sources and studies that measure and document just that.  

Our task is to use that knowledge moment to moment, day to day, no matter what we face. Individually and collectively we need to generate avalanches of gratitude. We need to allow ourselves to be overwhelmed with gratefulness for our blessings, those that are obvious and those that may hide in disguise. We do so with practice, moment to moment, day to day.

As I reflected, I felt guided to begin making a list of the people I’m grateful for. It began something like this:

• Cousin Marty, James Michael and his family

• Neighbors who shared their bountiful garden harvest much of the summer

• Another neighbor who installed insulation in the crawl space under my mudroom

• A community member who recently said to me ‘as a woman who also lives alone, you can call me anytime, 24/7, you need help’

• Friends who shifted their plans to have me over for dinner and brought dinner here so I could take care of an ailing Cool Hand Luke

And, on my list went, soon going beyond my local community (colleagues worldwide, activists on the front lines of change, etc.).  My avalanche of gratitude had begun. Like a tiny movement that can create an avalanche of snow and ice in the mountains, my list kept growing, leading to vast, deep, heartfelt gratefulness.

As my heart opened, my list expanded to include those who ‘push my buttons’ whether it be posting snarky comments on social media or expressing negativity in conversation. It encompassed media as well as elected officials whose words, tone, and decisions I loathe. I’m grateful for each and every one because in their aggravation of me, they push me to define my boundaries, my standards, what I will stand up for, and what I will stand in opposition to.  We are living in a time when that will become more and more important, but for today I’m simply grateful for them all. What about you? Will you add some gratitude to life today?

Grateful for my neighborhood!

Earth: Our Difficult Home

A Path In The Woods Nearby

Planet Earth is a very difficult proving ground, training ground, and a test laboratory. The condition that affects our planet is a changeable vibration level that comes at all times as a matter of testing. Gregge Tiffen (The Journey Continues: Mysterious Investigations – October, 2010)

I doubt that I’m alone in my need to be reminded that I’ve chosen to live on a planet where life is difficult. Life on Planet Earth requires us to learn to adapt on not just one level, but three: physical, mental, and spiritual. Gregge frequently reminded clients and students at his lectures that Earth is a difficult ‘post-graduate school’ in the universe and that it’s definitely not for sissies.

I needed this reminder as I reflected on events of the past few weeks, those in my life and those I’ve observed from a distance.  For the most part, life has felt intense, ripe with opportunity to reflect, consider, and adapt. 

It’s interesting, perhaps amusing on some level, that we chose this planet to learn the art of recalibrating ourselves, yet often we cling to the familiar and the comfortable (even when it’s not so comfy). We decide what’s acceptable (or not) often with little consideration, allowing ourselves to be swayed in by the opinions of others. We experience this in our individual lives and in society as changing conditions confront us.

Some conditions such as the change of seasons here in the mountains present routine annual rituals of preparation. Moving plants indoors and splitting/stacking kindling and firewood are two of many on my fall ‘to do’ list. Physically, I get a great workout in the beautiful fall weather when it’s not too hot, not too cold. Mentally, I’m challenged to make my list, check it twice, and maintain focus. Spiritually, the change of seasons reminds me that there is order in the universe, everything in its time. The seasonal change uses my re-adjustment ‘muscles’ and keeps me tuned into the requirement to constantly adapt.

I’m grateful that I maintain this perspective. Some folks prepare (or not) for winter grudgingly, grumbling that they wish the change wouldn’t come at all. ‘How do thoughts like this contribute to climate change?’ I wonder, allowing a slight detour in my train of thought. I notice that weather conditions consistently give us the gift of adapting. Perhaps that’s why many people complain about it so often. What difference might a subtle shift to embrace changing weather conditions make in mass consciousness? Or, in our individual lives?

Severe weather events like the hurricane currently raging across the southeastern United States, test our capacity, providing greater challenges and opportunities to adapt. In their wake, lives are lost, homes destroyed or severely damaged, basic services are lost. It’s not easy, yet we humans find ways to adapt. We help one another. We move on or we rebuild. Somehow we adapt. But I wonder, what is the deeper message of these events that we need to hear and adapt to?

Beyond changing weather and extreme weather events, collectively and individually, we are being presented with intense conditions in our communities and our countries around the globe. Our willingness and our ability to adapt are being tested and they will continue to be tested. That is the nature of life on our planet.

How will we/I rise to these tests? Will we cling to, even fight for, outdated ways of how we think things should be? Will I? Or, will we open ourselves to new thinking, new ways to call forth long-held ideals of justice, equality, fairness, and basic human decency? Will I?

Snow on the Peaks and a Morning Glimpse of the Great Sand Dunes just above the treetops.

The Energy of Love

Morning Clouds Bring Blessed Rain!

There are billions of molecules of energy entering your aura all of the time. They are being attracted by the magnetism of your vortex. Gregge Tiffen, Deeds Are Fruit – Words Are Leaves ­– October, 2008

… at whatever point we place our mental attention at that point the firm of God and company establishes a branch which is certain to be successful. Ernest Holmes Your Invisible Power quoted in Science of Mind, October, 2018

I woke to the sound of rain gently falling on the roof, its aroma wafting through an open window. I imagined for a moment how clean the rocks and trees will look and how soft the earth will feel under my feet when Luke and I venture out for our morning walk.

Rain is a blessed event here in this mountain desert, parched in drought conditions deemed “extreme” by experts who measure such things.

I take a few moments to feel gratitude deep in my bones and I speak a quiet, heart-felt ‘Thank you!’

This is where I place my attention as I begin this day.  I don’t do so with the intention of strengthening the branch of gratitude in my tree of life, yet I know that it will have that effect.

I allow, no I invite, Gregge’s words to sink in. I remember that we are energetic beings. The quality of the energy that we attract is determined by the qualities of our thoughts. Fear (and there is plenty of it ‘out there’ in our world) begets fear. Love magnetizes love. I choose love, expressing gratitude as one of love’s highest expressions.

I think about our world and my heart suggests that our greatest challenge in these times of chaos, cruelty, hostility aimed at making us fearful is to find loving ways to respond. I wonder how I might express my strong convictions about the current nominee for the Supreme Court to my senator from a foundation of love.

For love to inspire we need to invite it in with our attention, our thoughts and our gratitude. The energetic force of love deserves – no demands – our attention in these times. We need to call love forth as never before. Not as a superficial, airy/fairy concept, but as how we live – moment to moment, day by day.

Love does not cower in a corner waiting until it is safe to come forward. Love finds ways and words to express outrage and anger with care. Love invents approaches to navigate chaotic, even dangerous, events cautiously, yet without fear. Love fuels and finds ways to express strong, solid conviction. In the midst of darkness, love brings forth light. In the midst of drama, love is calm. In the midst of confusion, love seeks and finds clarity.

The conditions in our world need our attention but most all they need for that attention to be firmly grounded in love. As we each choose the messages and forms that best express our concerns, even our outrage, let the energy of love fuel us. As we make demands on elected officials to hear and respond to our voices, let us not seek to be the loudest, but the most loving. That is how we will build a world that we want to live in. Love is the answer.

Peek-A-Boo Showering Love on You!

Taking Pause

Love that Prickly Feeling of a Niggling Thought

Here is your educational mission: (1) Find the very best in you each day and use it; (2) Show the world your beauty, your courage, your understanding, your awareness, your creativity, your love. … If we are to live in joy and in accomplishment, we must release our cells from self-imposed restrictions so they can sense, interpret and move with us in the changing times. We need to be ready to respond, and to use experiences to our advantage. … there must be a willingness to let your cellular structure respond to the immediate event. Each day should be looked upon as the entrance to an adventure … Gregge Tiffen (What You Should Get From Education – September, 2007)

 Yep, I know that I’m using Gregge’s quote for a second week (http://cindyreinhardt.com/blog/answer-the-call. Some concepts and ideas bear repeating, especially when their meaning expands and deepens.  That’s what I experienced this week as I began to recognize that I’d said ‘yes’ when ‘no’ would better serve this mission in my life.

 Recently, I made a decision without listening to my cells/myself completely, responding ‘yes’ based solely on business considerations in response to an opportunity. Being ‘practical’, I stepped past questions that gently niggled: ‘What about your soul?’ ‘What about your commitment to write?’

 But, as I began to engage in the project, my body tensed and my creativity vanished. Feeling a bit like the deer in the headlights, I paused. I observed that this is not bringing forth the best in me. I felt blocked from those qualities I want to express in the world.

 I’ve learned (or at least hope I have) the cost of ignoring the gentle nudges of niggling thoughts. So, I began to reassess, reflecting on the questions above. Other questions gently followed. ‘What about the flexibility and flow that makes your heart sing?’ ‘What does this opportunity hold for you?’ ‘Are you feeling joy and excitement about that?’ ‘What are you feeling?’

 As I reflected, I saw clearly that my ‘yes’ had been grounded in fear. It was taking me off course, away from my dance with life. The niggling had invited me to examine my fear, to see beyond it and to renew commitments about how I want to live this life.

 With that, new questions – ones filled with joy, excitement and possibility – have begun to emerge:

• ·        What possibilities and choices are aligned with this ‘educational mission’?

• ·        What do I need?

• ·        What thinking needs to shift?

• ·        What choices don’t serve me now?

• ·        What new habits, routines and practices need to be put in place?

Niggling thoughts invite us to pause and allow our cells to inform our ‘selves’. When we honor these thoughts with a pause to reflect, we can find the best within us and discover how to express that best in the world that so badly needs our very best.

Color me grateful for the rapid wakeup call. Add in a splash of curiosity plus a dash (or two) of excitement as I pause, respond to myself and my cells, and once again, begin again discovering and expressing my best.

Finding the Road to Our Best

Answer The Call!

Hints of Fall!

Here is your educational mission: (1) Find the very best in you each day and use it; (2) Show the world your beauty, your courage, your understanding, your awareness, your creativity, your love. … If we are to live in joy and in accomplishment, we must release our cells from self-imposed restrictions so they can sense, interpret and move with us in the changing times. We need to be ready to respond, and to use experiences to our advantage. … there must be a willingness to let your cellular structure respond to the immediate event. Each day should be looked upon as the entrance to an adventure … Gregge Tiffen (What You Should Get From Education – September, 2007)

This week a deeper understanding and appreciation of my willingness to respond to what’s in front of me to is unfolding. I’m experiencing the joy and satisfaction of having responded to the flow of life in the moment rather than putting it off for a ‘more convenient’ time. And, I’m examining some habitual responses to life’s daily events.

Since closing the B&B, I often answer the phone only if I know who’s calling, and if it’s convenient, and if I want to engage. The unanswered calls go to voicemail to be checked later … sometimes much later. When I’m engaged in a focused project or conversation with someone else, this approach is great for maintaining flow, focus and concentration – necessary elements in business and life.

But, an event this week has me questioning my approach other than when it’s absolutely necessary.

A missed phone call on Monday morning – I didn’t reach the phone until the call had rolled to voicemail – and, not recognizing the number, I finished the task I was engaged in before checking to see if the caller left a message.

Yes, they did. “Hi, it’s ____ (a friend whom I’ve known for 10+ years). I’m in jail and … . Please call this number and let the sheriff know you got this message and whether you can help. Thanks!”

It took a few moments to get my head around what I’d heard. My heart kicked in as well. “Yes, I can bring money for your bond …” I said when I quickly returned the call and the sheriff brought my friend to the phone. I moved into action – calmly and clearly much to my surprise – transferring funds and stopping at the bank to withdraw cash (filled with gratitude that I was able to do so and knowing that I’d be repaid immediately). Cash in hand, I drove across the county, feeling calm, curious and aware of the opportunity to embrace and learn from a totally new experience. No, I’d never bailed someone out of jail before.

I had no idea what to expect in the process, why my friend was there, or what their state of mind would be. The process was straightforward and the sheriff on duty was one of the kindest, most professional public servants I’ve ever met. In sharing what had happened my friend said, “well, that’s an experience I’ve never had!” showing calm and courage in the midst of stressful conditions coupled with recognizing the event as a learning opportunity.

The day unfolded with several related events and adventures. In reflecting later I wondered ‘what if I’d not listened to that voicemail and responded fairly quickly?’ How would I feel and what opportunities might I have missed? What if the situation was reversed and I was the one in need of assistance?  In these reflections, I concluded that ‘it’s good to answer the call’.

My willingness to go with the flow, to “let my cellular structure respond to the immediate event” was reinforced as I recognized that a chance introduction on a morning walk several months back when I’d taken time to engage in a brief conversation manifested a friendship that expanded into a collaborative business opportunity taking shape just this week.

With our daily routines, our habits, jobs, responsibilities, etc. etc. it’s challenging to embrace each day as an adventure, an opportunity to “find the best in ourselves and use it” to show the world (and ourselves) our beauty, our courage, our understanding, our awareness, our creativity and our love. But in this week of surprising events and new awareness, I’m deepening my commitment to do just that.

What/Who is calling you right now? Pick up the call!

Evening Shadows In the Sacred Sangres