Insights – Melannie Thomas

Today is the last day to register to vote.  There was a period in my life when I abstained from voting because I believed my vote just did not matter.  As I matured, as I observed people around the world willing to die for the right to become voters; active participants in their governing, my attitude changed.

Although I remain skeptical about the influence of my ballot in the major races, I staunchly believe I can and do affect the local political arena, especially in California where the ‘Referendum’ remains an active part of the political pasture.

My re-entry into the voting quagmire was ignited by a dear friend who was a naturalized citizen from a third-world country who held a  PhD in History from Stanford.  With his encouragement, we hosted ‘vote-debates’ in my home; inviting friends and family to an evening of pro and con discussions of the California ballot.  A truly amazing and profound experience.  To participate,  one had to go beyond the 50-second commercial interest ads to the heart of the issues.  These gatherings never became shouting matches, and at times persuaded me to alter my position.

I miss those meetings.  My friend has long since passed over.  Life marches on, and I find it more and more challenging and time consuming to pour over the ballot ‘legalese’ in an effort to be as responsible as I can to the honor and privilege of voting.

Perhaps it is time to bring back vote-debate night.

There are moments when I am overwhelmed by a life so full, my life.

Turning on a faucet and having hot, potable water available instantly; standing beneath a cleansing shower; turning on the heater (or air-conditioner); having a reliable car; bird-watching and star-gazing; richly satisfying work; good friends; family; the dazzling beauty of nature which surrounds me; the ability to read and write well; the freedom to vote…I could go on and on.

The overwhelming part of my deep appreciation for all these riches is how easy it is to take it all for granted.  On a global scale, I truly am one of the world’s richest people.  For my bounty of blessings and my daily bread I direct my deepest appreciation to the intelligence behind creation.

In a recent conversation with a dear friend, she shared with me an experience years ago which had a profound affect on the direction of her life.  As she relates it, she was sharing a journal entry with a close friend about a deeply traumatic personal experience  At the end of the entry she had written, “I don’t know how I am ever going to live with this?”  Her friend answered with, “How are you going to live with it?”

She said to me that the unexpected question gave her a profound insight she had not seen.  That  how she ‘lived with it’ was a choice.  It was empowering for her to realize that she had a choice. She went on to reveal that the insight  gleaned from that simple question has continued to guide her life ever since.

Her story was a powerful reminder to me.  A reminder of just how much choice we actually have when dealing with the challenging ebbs and flows of life’s vicissitudes.

I have an active negative chatter-box; the inner voice that likes to beat me down.  Over the years I have gained considerable mastery over the flow of negative chatter.  However, the reality is that it will never go away.

I know these things: that it feeds on negativity; that it is most active when I am tired, frustrated, sad, and/or anxious.  I know that I have an arsenal of strategies to deal with the onslaught when it comes.  I also know that there are times when I want to wallow. Engaging my strategies seems like too much work.  But I know if I don’t, my negative chatter-box  will attack my well-being and my self-esteem mercilessly.  So even though it may take me awhile to work myself out of the mud, I will.

This week be mindful of your strategies.  If you have none, create them.  If you have them use them.  Life is more centered and peaceful when the chatter-box is contained.

“Act with a win-win attitude.  Use your creativity and sensitivity to blend all the diverse parts into a unified whole.”   The Original Angel Cards Book, Tyler & Drake.

When recently I came upon this quote, I felt fragile and empowered at the same time.

“It’s really a wonder that I haven’t dropped all my ideals because they seem so absurd and impossible to carry out.  Yet, I keep them, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart.  I simply can’t build up my hopes on a foundation consisting of confusion, misery and death.  I see the world gradually being turned into a wilderness, I hear the ever-approaching thunder, which will destroy us too, I can feel the sufferings of millions and yet, if I look up into the heavens, I think it will all come right, that this cruelty too will end, and that peace and tranquility will return again.”

Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl 1947

I love the word Autumn.  All the seasons have their unique qualities and special flavors.  I want to say that Autumn is my favorite, however I have come to realize that my ‘favorite’ seems to be the current season.  Having said that, the special qualities of Autumn or Fall that I relish, are the rhythms of harvest, the colors, the crisp cold morning air, the brilliant early morning sky, and  gathering around the bounty to celebrate and give thanks.

Granted there are some things I don’t particularly enjoy.  Beginning the descent toward the darkest part of the year (marked by the Autumnal Equinox on September 22); the bumper crop of falling leaves, all the necessary preparations for winter and the return of bitter cold..  However, I strive to stay with the season, looking forward to Indian Summer and to celebrating the harvest with friends and family.

As the Equinox approaches I invite you to enjoy the depth and breadth of this beautiful Autumn.

Resilience is the capacity to adapt easily to change; to recover from adversity.  I am not so sure about the ‘easily’ part, but I am confident in the process.  My personal experience and the experiences of countless others who have adapted to change, often radical, in a positive way is  substantive and inspiring.

As we enter third-stage-labor in the birthing of a new age, change is most often abrupt, abrasive and dis-heartening.  Added to the normal constant, adapting can become overwhelming.  Finding strength in body, mind and spirit is essential for experiencing resilience.

To those of you whose stories I know and whose struggle I witness, I salute your resilience.  Your ability to keep moving forward, to smile in the face adversity, to weep when sadness intrudes too deeply, to find beauty and humor in the daily conundrum.  You inspire me!  I thank you!

Late seemed like a good word for this week.  Monday is the day I post the Word for the Week and it is now Wednesday.  I don’t like being late.  Matter of fact the challenge for me is being chronically early.  I am happy to say I am getting better.  Fortunately for me and my blood pressure I am rarely irritated by the lateness of others, although I am occasionally disappointed.

My reason for being late this week is ‘due to technical difficulties’; sort of….  I was out-of-town and I had every confidence that I could use another computer to access the admin side of my Website and complete my obligation in a timely fashion.  I did not expect that because I was operating from a different computer that I would be asked for my password, which I didn’t have; not on paper, not in memory.  I tried a few times to put the right sequence together ( I do have some idea), but alas, it just would not click in.

So I am late.  We are all late at times for various reasons.  My plane was late yesterday because of a persistent headwind.  I am dashing around this morning so I won’t be late for my 9:00 appointment, which I ‘m intuiting is going to go overtime and then I will be late for the 10:30.

How do you handle being late, being too early, waiting, waiting and sometimes waiting some more?

I use Kathy Tyler and Joy Drake’s Angel Cards in my work.  At the end of each session my clients reach into a bag full of these little cards and they pick one.  It never ceases to amaze us all at how relevant the chosen card is to the theme of the consultation just ended.

Although I rarely choose a card myself, I was moved to do so this morning.  The card I chose was Education.  Curious about this choice, I opened the little Angel Card book to the following definition: “Cultivate your ability to learn from life’s rich patterns. You may not be able to establish the curriculum, but you can elect what courses to take at any given time and how to apply your knowledge.”

This week I invite you to meditate on the wisdom of this definition of Education.