Our minds are wonderful things. Based on past experiences, they try to solve all our problems and fix everything that seems to be going wrong in our lives. As soon as we fix one problem, a new one arises to capture our attention. We have a storyteller within our mind that judges our experiences as creating fear, anger, shame or despair. How am I ever going to get out of this seemingly endless situation of the ongoing pandemic? How can I ever transform my relationship to be full of joy rather than rejection or self-denial? How can I ever get out of debt? I can never be enough!
Our inner storyteller is always looking towards the past, trying to recreate a past treasured experience, or towards the future, trying to create a desired experience that promises to deliver our mental idea of perfection. The inherent conflict with this approach is that we can only really live our lives in the Now. There are infinite ways that Life can unfold from this moment. No matter how brilliant or practiced our mind is, no matter how skillfully our inner storyteller weaves together our past experiences to interpret our present situation, our storyteller cannot know everything there is to know about the infinite possibilities or control the outcome. We get lost in the details of avoiding what we think we don’t want, acquiring what we want to have and doing what we want to do. Our sharp focus blinds us to what is.
This month we have been talking about living in everyday wonder. Wonder connects our heart with the whole of Life, with our Oneness and interconnectedness. When we choose to be curious about embracing the now, we awaken our consciousness to what is rather than the limited perspective our storyteller chooses to see. Curiosity is a state of being fully present, of sensing our connection with Infinite Possibilities and the natural state of joy. It is like looking at a landscape that we have seen thousands of times before and seeing it with new eyes. Previously unseen gifts and possibilities delight our new found awareness. Our struggles to control our lives and everyone in it, to fix the next problem and the next, are not our true identity and purpose. By embracing the Now with curiosity, we “learn to see the world anew.” Curiosity creates spaciousness and opens us to greater possibilities. As Ernest Holmes said, “The Universe is always conspiring for our good.” Curiosity allows us to see and experience that Good.
Love and light,
Rev Pam
