CRESCENDOh Day Four and Madge's Thursday Musings...

Yup, it's day four on CRESCENDOh and my featured artists today are the craftylicious Cathie Filian and Kathy Peterson's inspiring Craft for Health blog. Please follow the link to visit these wonderful artists!

Madge muses...

The funny thing about life is that things are often not what they seem. We build up these grand expectations about them and then we realize that the shiny toy is maybe not so shiny at all. Expectation is a slippery slope. It can make us ignore our intuition and get caught up in our personal mythology. People can't actually know what we want from them if we don't speak it out loud. Things can't always unfold the way we'd like them to because we aren't the only ones in charge of reality.

I hear people often say that they have no regrets. I think that's pretty impressive, really. I surely have regrets. I think a life worth living almost always results in at least a few regrets. Living out loud means making choices that might not always end up the way we'd like them to. I think we all sometimes say something we didn't mean or forget to say something we did or opt for that shiny thing even when something in our gut tells us it might not be wise.

It's part of the deal. We will, if we march boldly ahead, make a few unfortunate turns and we will, if we live passionately, make a mistake or two. Yes, it's a dichotomy. There are no mistakes, but there are choices and consequences and some of the consequences are rather unpleasant. So perhaps we might call them mistakes, for lack of a better word? Those mistakes or consequences are opportunities and we can grow from them, learn from them and most importantly use them as a way to fine tune the practice of unconditional love. Practicing love for ourselves and love for those we encounter, especially those whom we don't much like.

We just keep making our way here through the wilderness and if we use our heart as our compass and our intellect to tender some of the intensity of the heart, we will at the very least end up having a most interesting journey.

I'm feeling introspective today. It is fall and this is what happens to me as winter starts lurking around the edges of my reality. I'm making huge changes and they're not going to make everyone happy. I'm probably going to step on a few toes without meaning to and I'm not quite sure how to prevent that. My entire reality and the entire fabric of my family's reality is shifting, and it is a huge thing. I have to hold on to the power of serendipity and the knowledge that no matter what choices I make, no matter where we end up, as long as I maintain the compassionate heart, all will be fine.

"My religion is kindness." The 14th Dalai Lama

"There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. We seek problems because we need their gifts." Richard Bach Illusions

“There are no mistakes. The events we bring upon ourselves, no matter how unpleasant, are necessary in order to learn what we need to learn; whatever steps we take, they're necessary to reach the places we've chosen to go.” Richard Bach The Bridge Across Forever

Love
Madge

Expectation

Photo Copyright Margot Potter 2006

I've had a long week.  I think too much.  I think too much and overact too quickly.  I'm hypersensitive and prone to melodramatic explosions. I have a deeply rooted desire to 'give the world a Coke and furnish it with love' and that can lead to my rose colored glasses being a lot too rosy.  Then when something happens to knock them off I'm shocked and dismayed to see that what seemed so rosy was really rather not.

Gifts should have bows on them, but they should not have strings attached.  It is good to do for others and it is good to be giving, but you don't have to give it all away and if you do and you get screwed in the process you have no one to blame but yourself.  Nobody owes you anything. If you do for others, you should do it because it feels good and if they turn around and hurt you, and they might, you still did the right thing.  The wheels of karma will make the adjustment.

Expectation is a slippery slope and one I upon which I am trying not to slide anymore.  That is going to begin with remembering not to give it all away.  Don't give anything away if you can't afford to completely release it. Don't give anything away you can't afford to lose. That also goes for lending and sharing.  Don't lend or share anything you can't afford to lose.  No, seriously.  I mean stuff, I mean information, I mean contacts, I mean connections, I mean friends...

...you get my point.  That's not to say don't give, just don't give it all away and then be indignant when it's all gone.  Don't be afraid to say, "No." 

Even when it feels like it's true, the truth is everyone is not out to get you. Everyone is out to get theirs. You aren't even on their radar.  So if you've invited them to the party and they bogart the appetizers or steal the silverware or pee in your pool, simply take them off of the guest list. 

I am trying to learn how to give freely without giving it all away.  I am trying to find the balance between paying it forward and draining my favor bank.  I am trying to remember that I can't live my life expecting others to make me happy.  Happiness is not a reaction to external stimuli, it's a choice.  I don't need to buy the world a Coke or furnish it with love.  The best way to spread joy is to live joyfully and to let go of  attachment.  The best way to furnish the world with love is to start with your own living room.  You can love others without showing your panties to everyone that asks.

xoxo
Madge