(no subject)
I feel the urge to write, but I'm not yet sure what I'll end up posting. I suppose sometimes it happens that way. All I know right now is the irresistible urge to put something down in words, and that's good enough for me.
I've been doing a lot of thinking recently -- when am I not? ask yourself this -- and have decided that, at least for the time being, I will continue to regard Raven as a totem. While I understand that it may take a while to settle, and that I may even find it eventually contradicted by other factors, I have always chosen to trust my intuition when it comes to spiritual matters. Thus I've chosen to go with it once more -- I welcome the Raven, and all that s/he may wish to teach me.
In keeping with my determination to maintain an attitude of openness and enthusiasm for learning, I have been revisiting Illusions by Richard Bach.
Those of you already familiar with the story likely already understand why I would choose it above any other book to herald my newfound relationship with the Raven. If you're not familiar with the book, though, I'll give you a bit of a "nutshell" to provide some context for the portions I will later quote.
Illusions relates the story of a man named Richard, who flies passengers for a living in a little airplane, ten minutes at a time , for three dollars per ride. Richard spends his days coasting through the air, looking for likely fields -- those close to populated areas and large enough to let him take off and land. It is in one such field near Ferris, Illinois that he meets Donald W. Shimoda.
Don (as we come to know him) is an interesting fellow. He not only has a unique perspective on the world, but can also do things that people would consider miraculous. His abilities are certainly enough to throw Richard for a loop -- at one point in the story, Richard actually leaves Don surrounded by a mob of people, determined to escape this man and whatever influence he has brought into Richard's life.
The escape doesn't work. (Otherwise, there wouldn't really be a story to tell.) In fact, not only does it not work, but Don actually manages to find Richard's little Fleet in a sixty-mile radius. What happens after that -- well, that's for you to find out by reading the story, now isn't it? :)
The full title of the book is Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah. It's a beautiful, inspiring story that isn't terribly long while having the feel of a much larger book. I'd encourage anyone with any interest in self-awareness to read it -- over and over again.
Here are a few quotes from the book, interspersed with observations:
The world
is your exercise-book, the pages
on which you do your sums.
It is not reality,
although you can express reality
there if you wish.
You are also
free to write nonsense,
or lies, or to tear
the pages.
What does the above quote mean in terms of everyday existence? It can be a bit difficult to wrap your mind around if you're unwilling to accept that everyone is indeed free to do whatever they wish. For instance, take a look at the conversation that follows Don's assertion that we are all free to chose our own path, regardless of what it may be:
"We are all free to do whatever we want to do," he said that night. "Isn't that simple and clean and clear? Isn't that a great way to run a universe?"
"Almost. You forgot a pretty important part", I said.
"Oh?"
"We are free do do what we want to do, as long as we don't hurt somebody else," I chided. "I know you meant that, but you ought to say what you mean."
I can imagine myself having much the same reaction -- and yet, Don is right. Everyone is free to do whatever s/he chooses, regardless of whether or not it does harm to another individual. Mind you, I do not and will not condone any act of harm -- but that is my choice. I choose to believe in a path that dedicates itself to the healing and protection of others. Whether or not others choose to do the same is often entirely out of my control.
In fact, I should say that it is entirely out of my control; however, it is not entirely out of the realm of my potential influence. While it certainly remains an individual's choice to "do no harm", as it has been mine, it is entirely within their power to determine whether or not they accept any type of influence or assistance to guide their actions. It may well be that I converse with someone about my chosen path, and they choose to investigate a similar path for themselves. In that instance, they have allowed me to have some measure of influence over their lives, if not their eventual decision.
Here is another quote:
You are led
through your lifetime
by the inner learning creature,
the playful spiritual being
that is your real self.
Don't turn away
from possible futures
before you're certain you don't have
anything to learn from them.
You're always free
to change your mind and
choose a different future, or
a different
past.
With our command of action, how could we not be free to accept that which we wish to keep, and reject that which we do not wish to accept? People do it all the time -- both unconsciously and consciously, to their benefit and to their detriment. A beneficial example: I have chosen to create my own philosophy, something that is comprised of what I wish to keep. I have tailored it over years to fit me as a person. I have chosen to accept it as my very own, and adhere to it for the rest of my life.
A detrimental example: Something happens to you as a child, and you have no wish to have it be part of your life. You deny that it has happened, instilling a sense of a different event in its place. You are free to choose a different past.
I use the latter as a detrimental example because denial creates a void within the self -- it refuses the potential benefit of the lesson within the event, no matter what the difficulty involved. For instance, I once broke a vow I had made to another person. The pain of their learning of that breach of trust nearly killed me -- literally. Yet I cannot deny that it happened -- to do so would be to refuse the lesson inherent in the pain it carries. Since I did not deny it, I have chosen to live differently. I am free to choose a different future.
I think I've written quite enough for now. I know I said there would be a few quotes, but there is plenty more time, and I keep getting interrupted. Besides, I should go to bed at some human hour tonight. :)
Blessings to all...