There is a saying: "Stop and smell the roses," but sometimes other things are worth stopping for as well. As I was beginning to write this entry this morning, I was mentally uplifted by a small wishing well that sits on the path next to my home that I pass daily.
As a young child growing up in Washington, there was a small wishing well that most of the children in our small town would throw pennies into each week when we went shopping at the neighborhood variety and hardware stores. Stopping at the wishing well made us feel rested, dreaming of the future and refreshed as we watched our nickels and quarters drop to the bottom. Similarly as a teacher I often have to take time out to refill my spirit so I have boundless inspiration for the coming school year.
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| I was honored to deliver a presentation for the Education for Life 40th Anniversary this summer. |
On my drive to California I was presented with a task that seemed like I would be climbing a long mountain all summer. We had currently outgrown our space at our current Living Wisdom School location was was challenged to pack up all our belongings and move to a new location. A large surmountable task.
However ,as I was traveling to the Education for Life celebration and family camp in California I was presented with a task that seemed very daunting. I felt that if I excepted the task, it would be like climbing a long mountain all summer. We had outgrown our current Living Wisdom location and I was being challenged to pack up all our belongings with all our staff, and move to a new location. My husband and I had moved our home last summer after 17 years and this was going to be a larger, if not insurmountable task, indeed.
As first, I was quickly taken to a lower, fearful space in my mind. "How can I possibly pack up my classroom and still be able to dip into the wishing well of spirit?" I wondered. Fear rushed through my whole being. But then, with a simple turn of my mind, a small voice said inside of me:" Enjoy, each moment as a way of dipping into the well of spirit. Take each moment deeper inward to fill your heart, mind and soul."
As if on the turn of a dime, a wave of energy filled my being. I could have given in to the frustration, but what I chose to do was refocus my spirit. As I was able to refocus my attention, our car was traveling over the border of Oregon to California. As you drive down the valley it is a breathtaking sight. When you enter California from Oregon the weather immediately switches, and fills you with warm rays of the California sun. The warmth of the sun filled my body to its core reminding me that I could trust Divine Mother to take care of all my needs.
My goal for the summer was not only to let go of anger and fear, but also to let go of wishing and waiting for things to be different. All I had to do was open my arms to each moment and fill my soul with Divine Mother's love deep within my being. I needed to let myself be refilled by that inner well, rather than wishing to control things outside me.
Even after my realization, I was still challenged with packing up my classroom, but you know when I let go of the resistance and my ego's wishing that things would be a certain way, the moving process took over. Every box, every rock that a child had given me, every pencil that a child had used in learning how to write, filled me with such loving memories that in the end, the work of moving bathed my soul.
How did you spend your summer? Were you able to dip into the well of spirit and all the beauty that lies before us?
We all can make our choices in life. This summer has been one of the most beautiful I've ever experienced, filling me with a deeper sense of gratitude in every moment.
