After winning several archery contests, the young and rather boastful champion challenged a Zen master who was renowned for his skill as an archer. The young man demonstrated remarkable technical proficiency when he hit a distant bull’s eye on his first try, and then split that arrow with his second shot. ”There,” he said to the old man, “see if you can match that!”
Undisturbed, the master did not draw his bow, but rather motioned for the young archer to follow him up the mountain. Curious about the old fellow’s intentions, the champion followed him high into the mountain until they reached a deep chasm spanned by a rather flimsy and shaky log. Calmly stepping out onto the middle of the unsteady and certainly perilous bridge, the old master picked a far away tree as a target, drew his bow, and fired a clean, direct hit.
“Now it is your turn,” he said as he gracefully stepped back onto the safe ground. Staring with terror into the seemingly bottomless and beckoning abyss, the young man could not force himself to step out onto the log, no less shoot at a target. “You have much skill with your bow,” the master said, sensing his challenger’s predicament, “but you have little skill with the mind that lets loose the shot.”
The Langston Hughes poem, Dreams, absolutely has it right. As human beings we need to dream. Pursuing your dreams moves you to step out of your box and your comfort level. Most times they require you to learn about things you might otherwise had no desire to know or with which to concern yourself. Going after a dream sometimes starts you off in one direction and you end up somewhere totally unexpected but just as wonderful. They give you an opportunity to live in the mystery.
I have not felt this alive in a long time due to my efforts to get “The Twelve Laws of Santa Claus” created and out into the world. This dream has awakened me, excited me, and given me energy in other areas of my life. I have started working out again, I have found a spiritual center that I look forward to attending every week and I’m reaching out and sharing my life with others in a way I have never done before.
And if for whatever reason my dream doesn’t pan out the way I originally intended, I will have lost nothing by pursuing it. I will have created, learned, been inspired and inspired others and THAT is what dreams are here to do.
Go and live your dream! You will gain more than you could ever lose. ~ Christopher Hogan Lay
I never knew love like this before
Now I’m lonely never more
Since you came into my life
You are my lovelight, this I know
And I’ll never let you go
You my all, you’re part of me
Once I was lost and now I’m found
Then you turned my world around
When I need you, I call your name…
…This feeling’s so deep inside of me
Such a tender fantasy
You’re the one I’m living for
You are my sunlight and my rain
And time could never change
What we share forever more…
…You are my lovelight, this I know
And I’ll never let you go
You my all, you’re part of me
Once I was lost and now I’m found
And you turned my world around
When I need you, I call your name
‘Cause I never
Knew love like this before
Opened my eyes
‘Cause I never
Knew love like this before
What a surprise
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?
So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Hui Tzu said to Chuang Tzu:
“All your teaching is centered on what has no use.”
Chuang Tzu replied:
“If you have no appreciation for what has no use,
you cannot begin to talk about what can be used.
“The earth for example, is broad and vast,
But of all this expanse a man uses only a few inches
Upon which he happens to be standing at the time.
“Now suppose you suddenly take away
all that he actually is not using,
so that all around his feet a gulf yawns,
and he stands in the void
with nowhere solid except under each foot,
how long will he be able to use what he is using?
Hui Tzu said:
“It would cease to serve any purpose.”
Chuang Tzu concluded:
“This shows the absolute necessity
of what is supposed to have no use.”
Such a feeling comin’ over me
There is wonder in most everything I see
Not a cloud in the sky
Got the sun in my eyes
And I won’t be surprised if it’s a dream
Everything I want the world to be
Is now coming true especially for me
And the reason is clear
It’s because you are here
You’re the nearest thing to heaven that I’ve seen…
…Something in the wind has learned my name
And it’s tellin’ me that things are not the same
In the leaves on the trees and the touch of the breeze
There’s a pleasin’ sense of happiness for me
There is only one wish on my mind
When this day is through I hope that I will find
That tomorrow will be just the same for you and me
All I need will be mine if you are here
I’m on the top of the world lookin’ down on creation
And the only explanation I can find
Is the love that I’ve found ever since you’ve been around
Your love’s put me at the top of the world
1. Be Clear. Clarity is one of the most important keys to manifesting what you want. If your thoughts aren’t clear, then the Universe—that is, God—doesn’t know how or what to give you. If there’s something you’ve already determined for yourself, write a list of every detail you can think of, every attribute and characteristic that defines the goal. Look at this list often and add to it. Focus on the details as clearly as you can and imagine them in your mind.
2. Be Open. Being clear and open may initially seem like opposing concepts. In the first case, you were asked to clearly define exactly what you’re determined to manifest. Now you’re being asked to be open to anything the Universe may send in your direction that either amplifies or clarifies the desired goal. In reality, they are supportive. Once you’ve clearly defined the desired experience, you then open yourself to every possible variation. It’s as if you declare to the Universe: “This or more.”
3. Be Willing. Your willingness to observe, absorb, and then release everything that comes into your consciousness will help determine how easily it flows into your life. Begin by observing what you desire and asking the following questions: Is it something that will serve more than your own self-interests? Does it genuinely inspire your heart? Are you able to release or surrender the goal, then trust that it will flow to you naturally and easily?
4. Be Happy. God’s will for you is perfect joy. This means there’s a degree of happiness that neither the world nor the ego can understand but your heart is constantly striving to achieve. This is what you truly desire, for it’s the joy that bridges Heaven and Earth. The more you realize that you deserve perfect joy and accept it, the more you become the kind of teacher the world needs most.
5. Be Focused. Stay focused on what’s behind the goal rather than on the goal itself. Ask yourself, Why am I seeking this gift in the first place? We usually think of focus as something that’s fixed and straight. I suggest thinking of it as fluid and flowing. Your mind doesn’t always know what’s best for you and a strict, unyielding mind-set might attract something that doesn’t serve your highest good, so opening to a flowing focus makes sense.
6. Be Expectant. Always expect the best! Affirm that everything you desire will come to you easily and naturally. Energy flows where attention goes. If you’re focused on creating something but your inner thoughts are fixed on failure, that’s what you’ll attract. We’ve all heard the saying “Expect a miracle.” This is very good advice, because what you truly expect will always be yours.
7. Be Energetic. The higher the impulse, the more energetic the response. In other words, your energy usually increases when you ask for what your soul really wants. Asking for an around-the-world cruise would create more positive energy than asking for a car. Let your passion be your guide, and the energy required will follow. Follow your heart, not your mind. Your heart is always a better barometer of what Heaven is choosing to add to your life.
8. Be Positive. If you’re negative about what you’re trying to attract, the Universe will interpret your negativity as not wanting. Negative energy can sometimes hide in your consciousness and evade the obvious movements of your rational mind. That’s because the blocks to your positivity are often non-rational. Sometimes these negative beliefs just need you to acknowledge them, and then they can move on their way.
9. Be True. Being true is the same as being honest—something that’s required if you want to successfully manifest your heart’s desire. You have to be honest with yourself. The question to ask is: How do I succeed in attracting what my soul wants? The answer is always do the work that’s required to sweep away the limiting beliefs that have been blocking you.
10. Be Grateful. Gratitude is perhaps the most important key to attracting everything you deserve. It’s the activating force that God can’t deny, and the Universe bows to a heart filled with Divine appreciation. When someone is grateful for a gift you’ve offered or a small act of kindness you’ve shown, it makes you want to give even more. The Universe works in a similar way, so be grateful for every gift from God, no matter how small.
An Ant nimbly running about in the sunshine in search of food came across a Chrysalis that was very near its time of change. The Chrysalis moved its tail, and thus attracted the attention of the Ant, who then saw for the first time that it was alive.
“Poor, pitiable animal!” cried the Ant disdainfully. “What a sad fate is yours! While I can run hither and thither, at my pleasure, and, if I wish, ascend the tallest tree, you lie imprisoned here in your shell, with power only to move a joint or two of your scaly tail.” The Chrysalis heard all this, but did not try to make any reply.
A few days after, when the Ant passed that way again, nothing but the shell remained. Wondering what had become of its contents, he felt himself suddenly shaded and fanned by the gorgeous wings of a beautiful Butterfly.
“Behold in me,” said the Butterfly, “your much-pitied friend! Boast now of your powers to run and climb as long as you can get me to listen.” So saying, the Butterfly rose in the air, and, borne along and aloft on the summer breeze, was soon lost to the sight of the Ant forever.
