Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Lesson # 20: A Journey, Not a Destination

The spiritual path, the evolutionary journey we are all traveling, is a long and winding road, often exhausting and sometimes perilous. Just when you think you have conquered a fear or achieved mastery over a problem area of your life, you find yourself careening off into a ditch, perhaps getting stuck in the mud or snow, or even sustaining injury.

Sometimes you are graced with moments of clarity, epiphanies that convince you you'll never see things the same as you did before; you will never fall to that trap again. Occasionally these experiences take hold, but more often they do not, and you find yourself in the frustrating and sometimes even devastating position of falling backward into an old pattern of low self esteem, addiction, abuse, etc. This is particularly distressing because you know you had been gifted with a divine dispensation, only to seemingly lose it or throw it away.

Likewise, sometimes through great personal effort or a difficult life experience, you learn a powerful lesson. Perhaps, for example you almost lose someone you love due to your neglect. This experience awakens you to intense love and appreciation for this person, and you vow to never take her for granted again. but then you take her for granted again, and the relationship ends.

These "mistakes," these human failings are what we came into these bodies to negotiate. When we blame others for our problems, we have missed the point entirely, but when we feel the effects of our errors and learn something from them, anything at all, we have made progress.

So this week I ask you to look at the progress you've made in your life. Forget about the failures, and just appreciate who you are or what you've done that you feel good about. And remember to enjoy the journey.

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