Notes from the Universe

Yesterday I watched a small bird, flying very fast, disappear into the canopy of an oak tree. So dense were its leaves that it was impossible to see what happened next, though I can tell you it remained inside.

I wondered how the little bird found its opening through the leaves at such a speed, and then managed to gently align its fragile body on the branch it chose to land upon, all within a fraction of a second. Not to mention the impossible to imagine flying maneuvers required: the banking, the curling, the vertical and horizontal stabilizations, the deceleration and landing.

Memory? Calculation? Not in that tiny brain. Instinct? Maybe, but how does instinct know which way the branches of a tree have grown when no two are the same?

Terry, that little bird just knew. It had faith, in spite of not being able to see how things would work out, that if (and only if) it stayed the course the details would be taken care of; that an opening would appear and a twig would be found. In fact, had she slowed down enough to carefully and logically inspect the tree first, the prudent thing to do, she would have lost her lift and fallen to the ground.

Kind of like reaching for your dreams. Neither memory, nor calculating, nor instincts are the deciding factors, but faith coupled with action.

Tallyho,
The Universe

www.tut.com

I have to share a story today - enjoy.

This is Good

The story is told of a king in Africa who had a close friend with whom he grew up. The friend had a habit of looking at every situation that ever occurred in his life (positive or negative) and remarking, "This is good!"

One day the king and his friend were out on a hunting expedition. The friend would load and prepare the guns for the king. The friend had apparently done something wrong in preparing one of the guns, for after taking the gun from his friend, the king fired it and his thumb was blown off. Examining the situation, the friend remarked as usual, "This is good!"

To which the king replied - "No, this is not good!" and proceeded to send his friend to jail.

About a year later, the king was hunting in an area that he should have known to stay clear of. Cannibals captured him and took him to their village. They tied his hands, stacked some wood, set up a stake and bound him to the stake.

As they came near to set fire to the wood, they noticed that the king was missing a thumb. Being superstitio

us, they never ate anyone who was less than whole. So untying the king, they sent him on his way.

As he returned home, he was reminded of the event that had taken his thumb and felt remorse for his treatment of his friend. He went immediately to the jail to speak with his friend.

"You were right," he said, "it was good that my thumb was blown off." And he proceeded to tell the friend all that had just happened." And so, I am very sorry for sending you to jail for so long. It was bad for me to do this."

"No," his friend replied, "This is good!"

"What do you mean, 'This is good'? How could it be good that I sent my friend to jail for a year?"

"If I had not been in jail, I would have been with you, and not here with you right now."

In a very unusual way, the message here unfolds into exposing the following principle about life.

"Absolutely everything happens for a purpose; and out of what seems like adversity at the time; always comes good".

I'm sure that if any of us care to reflect back on the tragedy's, the heartaches, the 'bad times' in our lives, that we discover that we have really grown or developed during that period of time:even though the reflection may still cause us discomfort in some way.

It is in this way that we slowly gather experience and wisdom, and even though we may think or feel that it is unfair, that's the way it is.

"This is good". Many of our life's experiences have saved us from some form of cannibals; it's just that we often don't know that they have at the time.

So, for a simple example to help with awareness: next time you may begin to feel you are being 'wronged' by being stuck in a traffic jam, think about the cannibals that could be lurking down the road a bit,but will be gone by the time you get there.

Now that's a bit different, but worth trying: "this is good" - despite the circumstances.

Remember: "What others do or say is their stuff; how we react, or not, is our stuff"!
And: "True Happiness in life isn't having what you want, but wanting what you have"!

© Phil Evans

www.peoplestuff.com.au

This little message helped me today - I hope you can apply it to your life as well.

Terry

The Lesson of the Morning Glory!

I planted seeds in my little garden this year.

I have never planted seeds before, because I am not a very patient person, and waiting for the little green shoots to rise above the ground, was just too much for me. But this year, I thought I would give it a try. I thought it would be a good metaphor for me, to plant something and watch it grow, much as I have many times, planted thoughts, dreams and affirmations and watched many of them become a reality.

And so, in the Spring of this year, I planted my garden. I chose many types of flowers and among them, Morning Glories. Within a month, many of the other flowers were bursting through the earth, but not the Morning Glories.

Each morning, I would run outside to check on them, and nothing, nothing for several weeks more. I was about to give up on them. I was sure that they just did not 'take' so to speak. But finally, it happened! They had broken through the earth, and were starting to climb. And climb, and climb, and climb, they did....with their big, beautiful, heart shaped leaves.

And so, the saga continued, nothing for weeks and weeks and weeks but more and more beautiful leaves. And I thought to myself, "Well, leaves are nice, but that is all I will probably get at this point." And then, one fine and glorious morning, there it was, the most beautiful sky-blue morning glory I have ever seen!!! It seemed like a miracle to me. I had waited over 3 months for this one delicate, funnel-shaped flower to show up and now here it was, in all its splendor.

It reminded me of just how many times I had waited in life for something I had longed for, and how incredible it felt when it finally arrived, and also, how many times, that I had wanted to throw in the towel, and just give up.

But I wasn't prepared for what was to happen next, with these little flowers, and I was surprised and deeply saddened by it.

Roses and geraniums and daisies and most other flowers bloom and stay around for a while, but not Morning Glories. Morning Glories open themselves up to the world, in the morning, in all of their glory, hence the name, Morning Glory.

And if you look closely at them, you will see how extraordinary they are, both in colour and texture, and that in their centre, is a kind of golden light that shines from within.

But here is the hard part...
At the end of the day, they turn a most beautiful shade of lavender, and then close up, wither and die. They live for only one day, and then they are gone. I cannot tell you how much this saddened me, and what a profound effect this little flower had upon my life. I kept thinking how sad to be so beautiful and live for only one day. And then, I suddenly realized what a gift they were.

You see, it doesn't matter how long your life is. It only matters that you were here, in all your glory, that you opened up completely, and let your light shine, and that you brought joy to those who came into contact with you. That's what matters to the morning glory, and that's what really matters to all of us.

The morning glories make me appreciate every new day now, in a way I didn't before. Each evening, I go and visit with them, knowing those particular ones won't be here tomorrow, new ones will take their place. If we knew when we woke up in the morning, that we only had that one day to really live, life would be very different indeed for many of us.

Now, each morning, I give thanks that I have been given the gift of another day, in all its glory. We can learn from all of life, if we remain open to the beauty that is all around us. And nature can be one of our greatest teachers.

What a profound lesson from such a simple flower.

Thank you, my sweet little morning glories!

Veronica Hay

Veronica Hay is an inspirational writer and author of In A Dream, You Can Do Anything, An Extraordinary Collection Of Words. Her work inspires others to be more of who they really are. For more insights and inspiration you can visit her website at: www.insightsandinspirations.com or email her at veronicahay@telus.net