LIfe Lessons in the Texas Two Step

Life is such an interesting journey.  It is such an individual undertaking, that will no doubt have its share of joys and challenges.  And while we may delight in the joys, the challenging events are the real gold, the impetus that actually kneads and molds us into who we are meant to be.  For, while we humans are amazing creatures in our own rights, we tend to have a certain degree of inertia, a certain degree of psychological and spiritual laziness, that is quite content to maintain the status quo.  When life is sailing along smoothly, we have no reason to change.  Change tends to be the end result of struggle and strife.

For the few lucky ones, challenges are minor, and changes are graciously adopted.  For the rest of us, change can be a slow and inconsistent process - something akin to the Texas Two Step - two steps forward and one step back.  While this method of change will undoubtedly prove to move us eventually forward, it can be frustrating to find ourselves dealing with the same issues over and over again.  Character building is not for the faint of heart!

And yet, if we really want to grow, really want to reach our spiritual and personal best, we must find beauty in all of life's events.  Without the valleys, we will not fully appreciate the peaks.  And so, we must be grateful for all that life throws at us, in its assorted box of chocolate Forrest Gump kind of way. 

Even if personal growth is not your ultimate goal (or even a goal), it is just plain easier to seek out the good in a situation.  Okay, maybe easier is not the correct word, since it is quite easy to hop on the whoa is me bus when life gives you lemons.  However, you will certainly find a challenging situation easier to endure (and even rise above) when you look for the good, the silver lining, that is always there, quite often sitting shyly in the corner just waiting to be discovered.

This pursuit of the silver lining really comes down to two important elements - faith and gratitude.  Faith that things will work out, perhaps not as you had planned, but always for the best.  Faith that you have the strength and creativity to work through the situation.  Faith that all is just as it should be, for now.  The second element, gratitude, is equally important.  Being grateful for all the good and wonderful things in your world helps you to find that silver lining.  Gratitude will pull you through, even if faith is faltering.  Gratitude sweeps out the cobwebs of despair and heartache, making room for bright and hopeful beginnings.  The two greatest gifts that I could ever give to our teenage son are faith and grateful, for with them, anything is possible.

With this in mind, I venture forth into the day, faith in one pocket, gratitude in the other, as I marvel at this game of life.  I have faith that the sun will rise and set and will shine down on me, and I am grateful for the whatever the day brings.

Who Are You in 1200 Characters or Less

When setting up this blog page I had to write a new Introduction to my profile section, since the old intro dealt specifically and exclusively with my food blog ("Ode to My Easy Bake Oven") and my new intro had to encompass both, seemingly divergent blogs.  As usual, I did not think too much about things, but just sat down and let my verbal cup runneth over, so to speak.  I, of course, typed far more than the 1200 characters allowed for this section, and so had the arduous and painful task of self-editing. (No author ever likes to remove a single letter, not to mention entire word or sentence, unless under unimaginable duress!)  But, edit, I did, until I had managed to sneak in under the minuscule allotment of runes.

When my husband read my new intro, he immediately remarked that he loved it (I knew I picked a good one!), saying that he loved that I made no mention what so ever as to what I did for a living.  Funny - it never occurred to me to even do so.  However, upon reflection, I realize what an interesting and astute observation he did make, since for most people when asked to describe who they are, they immediately start with what they are.  I'm a doctor...a lawyer...a teacher....an artist....a mechanic....a computer tech....a student...I'm sure you get the picture.  But what we do has very little to do with who we are; what we do is simply how we spend a good deal of our time, hopefully making enough money to support a happy and fulfilling life.

In fact, on a very basic level, every one of our intros could start out with the same sentence...

I am a spiritual being, having a human experience.

The bits that we add after this sentence simply fill out the details a little more.  And, for most of us, what we do for a job or career or life role, will undoubtedly change and evolve over our life time, and so, in an effort not to have to constantly update profiles, I vote that we could all simply edit down our info to that one, brief sentence. 

"Hold on a minute", says the Ego, who up until this point has been sitting somewhat quietly (and definitely anxiously) in the corner.  "You can't forget about me! Where would you be without me?!  You are nothing without me!"  The Ego (aka the inner toddler) does have a seemingly endless and self-inflated opinion of himself.  But, as we grow more conscious of our infinitely powerful inner world, which is cosmically connected to all of our potential and possibilities, we must learn to tame and sometimes suspend our Ego.  We don't need to dispense with Ego, just keep it in perspective.

Of course, we have to wonder if such a simple Ego-free statement could adequately sum up such a complex human being. Is it enough to simply describe oneself in a short and simple sentence? Would doing so negate all of the other things that we are?  Can such a condensed, uncomplicated and simplified description appropriately convey the whole of us?  I suppose it would depend on who you ask - your Spirit or your Ego.

And so, in closing, I invite you to consider your own personal intro.  Imagine that you are at a cocktail party where everyone is a stranger.  The hosts have asked you introduce yourself to the other guests, describing yourself, but omitting any details of your profession - who are you? (Please feel free to unleash your Ego as you see fit!)