Where there’s a Will there’s a Way

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
~ Albert Einstein

Crises happen upon you when least expect them to. Like tremors, they shake things up. They turn your world upside down, shatter your heart and bring you to your knees.

Two weeks ago my dad suffered a major heart attack. As one would expect, this sent me on an emotional rollercoaster ride, experiencing everything from shock, to fear, panic, to sadness and helplessness. It is difficult to see people whom you love go through trauma. Sometimes no matter how much you remind yourself to accept what is and to trust in the power of the Universe, you never feel prepared for the soul crushing experiences that you are faced with, especially when it involves your parents. It didn’t help that I live in a different place to my parents and could not get there right away. Fortunately, my dad was lucky to survive the heart attack and the surgery that followed.

Throughout this gruelling experience, I have witnessed the work of Divine intervention. If there was ever any doubt that Spirit and angelic helpers were at work in our lives, this experience was enough to convince most people completely.

My father works 2 hours away from home, he commutes to work every day. At the time that his heart attack occurred, he was driving home from work. When he realised what was happening, he managed to drive himself to the nearest town and get to a hospital. The fact that he was able to do this is quite miraculous in my eyes. He could have had an accident on the road. He could have pulled over and given up on getting help because of the debilitating pain. But he didn’t. Instead, he got himself to a rural hospital with only two nurses and one doctor. With minimal supplies, they managed to assist him until an ambulance arrived 45 minutes later to transport him to a bigger hospital another an hour and 15 minutes away, where he underwent heart surgery.

Three days later, he walked out of hospital. He looked frail and thin. It was a scary to see him that way. But for the most part he was pretty much his usual self – driving my mother crazy. The doctors were amazed. Firstly, that he had the ability to drive himself while in the process of having a heart attack. Most people pass out because the pain is so excruciating. Secondly, that he survived the wait for the ambulance as well as being transported. Patients are usually airlifted to bigger hospitals ASAP. The helicopter was not available on that day. They were also amazed at how fast he recovered from the surgery. They said that they’d never seen a case like his. Miracle? You decide. It is in my eyes.

“If you can suffer an acute heart attack, drive 50km to the nearest hospital yourself, wait for the only doctor in a small rural hospital to arrive to provide some treatment, wait another 45 minutes for an ambulance to come from another town, and then travel 1 hour 15 minutes to the nearest city, and then undergo heart surgery, and walk 2 days later, you can pretty much survive anything!” ~ Brian Williams

Each crisis has its lessons. This whole experience has reminded me of how powerful the will of a human spirit can be. The will to survive and to live can give you the strength to overcome and rise above all kinds of circumstances.  The conscious mind may not always know the answers. We may not know how you are going to get through something, or how you are going to achieve your dreams. But your Spirit always knows. As the age old adage goes – Where there is a will there is a way. Sometimes when you don’t know how, you just need to be willing. A Course in Miracles teaches about the need for willingness, for it is through being willing that we open a channel to our hearts and allow space for change, transformation and guidance to enter.

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I am also humbled by the grace of God. Everything panned out according to Divine timing, leading him to the right people in the right places at the right time. I am grateful that my family is safe and that my dad was given a second chance. I’ve been reminded that life is so precious and that miracles happen every day. We are always blessed with opportunities to make the best of what we have, to start over at any moment, to reach for the stars with our dreams and to make an impact with your life by spreading love, inspiration, joy, peace, hope and the Divine light within you.

You just have to be willing. Are you willing to live? Are you willing to breathe, to experience life’s joys, to dream and to live your life’s purpose? Let your willingness carry you forward to where your destiny flows. 

Like a Fish out of Water: Step out of your comfort zone

Stepping out of your comfort zone can be scary at times. While staying in touch with the familiar feels safe, facing fears and challenging yourself to try new things always has beautiful rewards that make it worthwhile.

I recently read a book called – The Day the Whale Came (also published under the name Grayson) – written by open water swimmer and endurance athlete, Lynne Cox. The book tells the story of how at the age of 17, while training to swim off the California mainland, Lynne Cox encountered a lost baby grey whale. The baby whale, who she named Grayson, had somehow separated from his mother. In an effort to keep the whale at sea, Lynne ends up spending hours in the ocean and swimming a couple of miles to an oil rig in the deep rough waters, staying with Grayson until he was reunited with his mother.

I loved this sweet story and the picture that she painted of ocean life. I enjoyed the little nuggets of inspiration included in the book as well, as it touches on lessons in endurance, having faith, personal strength and challenging your own limits.

What do fish have to do with stepping out of your comfort zone?

One of the interesting things that Lynne Cox mentions at the start of the book is the grunion run. As a nature loving soul, I was fascinated by it so I did a little research. Grunions are fish with a very unique spawning behaviour. Each year, during Spring and Summer, they swim ashore the South coast of California, during New and Full moons when the tides are high to lay their eggs in the beach sand. They then wiggle their way back to the ocean waters. It is an incredible sight! (See youtube clip here:Grunion Run) This makes for an interesting take on the saying “Like a fish out of water”. I was blown away by the fact that these brave little critters courageously leave the safety of the waters to fulfil their role in sustaining the future of their species. It’s an inspiring demonstration of the importance of stepping out of your comfort zone.

Life constantly challenges you to help you grow. However, since routine and familiarity gives us a sense of emotional security, the fear of change makes us resist it. This puts you at risk of becoming too complacent. But when you push the boundaries and take a few risks from time to time, you gain valuable experiences and inevitably expand your horizons. Stepping out of your safe space sets you life’s journey in motion life and attracts exciting experiences. It invites adventure. And while those adventures may turn into misadventures sometimes, the lessons you learn and the growth spurts that your soul goes through are invaluable.

Lynne Cox’s life story in itself is a one of a truly inspirational trailblazer who has built her legacy around constantly moving beyond the boundaries of comfort and pushing herself to new limits. She was breaking world records from the age of 12, when she did her first long distance open water swim across Catalina Channel with a group of other teenage swimmers. She went on to swim the English Channel, Cook Strait, Bering Strait and Antarctica among many other swimming expeditions. I am so inspired by her determination and achievements as an individual and as a woman as well.

“Sometimes we have to step out of our comfort zones. We have to break the rules. And we have to discover the sensuality of fear. We need to face it, challenge it, dance with it.”
~ Kyra Davis

What is waiting for you beyond the boundaries of your comfort zone? How can you take one step outside of your safe space today? Start now. Try new things. Do everyday things differently. Take a risk. Break free from restrictions that you have placed on yourself. Allow yourself to expand and become more of who you are. Enjoy the adventures. Learn from the misadventures. The important thing is to live your life, populated it with rich experiences, stretch to your ultimate limits and blaze your own trail in the process.

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The Art of Opening Up

“I sit before flowers, hoping they will train me in the art of opening up.” ~ Shane Koyczan

When you open up and share your stories, you allow others who live similar stories to know that they are not alone. 

I loved witnessing the bravery that the first flowers of the new season demonstrated when they opened their little petals and filled my garden with sweet scents weeks before winter came to a close. I imagine that it takes a certain trust in the unseen forces of the Divine to courageously move from bud to bloom. These gentle creatures teach us the delicate art of opening up and fearlessly sharing your extraordinary gifts with the world. They blossom unapologetically and are a mirror of the love and beauty alive within each of us.

When writing the intro for Pearl’s guest blog post two weeks ago I was reminded of those fragile moments early in my relationship with my husband. At the time, I was not used to receiving affection or positive reinforcement. A childhood plagued with bullies and growing up in a harsh environment led me to retreat inward as a defence mechanism. But something shifted when he opened the petals of his heart before me and radiated a kind and genuine love that I never thought I’d find. His honesty, warmth and openness softened the rough edges of my jaded heart, so that with time I began to open up too. The manner in which my husband embodies his presence always inspires me. He has a beautiful way of coaxing people out of their shells and allowing them to be comfortable, as well as to see their own inner beauty.

 “How did the rose ever open its heart and give to this world all its beauty? It felt the encouragement of light against its being, otherwise, we will remain too frightened ” ~ Hafiz

My desire to inspire and share healing with others has encouraged me to do the same over the years. So many people walk difficult paths and often all they need is a little bit of positive energy, understanding and sincerity to encourage them to let their guard down and share the rich contents of their inner world. By being who you are more fully and openly expressing your essence, you inevitably give the people around you permission to let down their facades and to be more of who they are freely. They open up and the pathways to meaningful connections are formed. I’ve come to treasure those precious moments when the other person suddenly lights up and feels comfortable and inspired enough to bring their exquisite inner petals to the surface. Watching a liberated heart sparkle in plain sight is incredible.

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Experience has taught me that you never know the burdens that each person carries or how long they have been imprisoned in the shadows of fear or pain. We learn to hide these parts of ourselves in shame, and pretend that all is fine. Yet, so many of us go through similar experiences. When you open up and share your stories, you allow others who live similar stories to know that they are not alone. When you share your dreams, your allow others to dream too. When you communicate messages of love and inspiration, you touch the lives of those who are willing to receive them in profound ways.