SURPRISE! SURPRISE!

“Surprise! Surprise! God is a surprise! Open up your eyes and see!”…the chorus of a song, my sister loved to play and sing along with.

This week… Christmas week…there were no pennies… turning up and surprising me in unlikely locations. ..Perhaps, I did not see! …

 I was preoccupied with a pain in my left arm (no it was not a heart attack. I ruled that out quickly. No time for a massage therapist either). I complained to my husband at least twice a day, took an anti inflammatory, meditated about it, and even offered up my suffering for someone I loved.

The pain…  to me!… was extreme, and it’s torture, as it lessened and gained strength  throughout the day and night,  reminded  me of my vulnerability, and the little control I had over this pain. I tried to figure out what happened. Did I hit the door frame when I entered or exited the room…this often happens, when I think I am so rushed for time, and  try to cut corners...literally! Did I pick up too many heavy objects?  The blame game even entered the picture…my husband, in trying to alleviate the pain, must have worsened it.  I tried to pray every time I would look for an explanation, rather than ruminate over the cause…not too successful!

Another of my sisters had given me a daily reading book titled, “God Calling”. Although I sometimes miss a day, (the cutting corners problem again), I always find the reading so appropriate to what is going on in my life. Allow me to quote one of the 3 paragraphs of the Dec 21^st reading titled “Smile indulgently.”

“Children, take every moment as of My planning and ordering. Remember your Master is the Lord of the day’s little happenings. In all the small things yield to My gentle pressure on your arm. Stay or go, as that pressure, Love’s pressure indicates.”

“Gentle pressure on your arm.”  I did smile indulgently… and laugh at the irony of gentle pressure versus excruciating pain. It reminded me of Tevya in the show “Fiddler on the Roof”…After bearing many burdens he says, “Lord, if this is how you treat your faithful servants, no wonder you have so few.”

The severe pain left that day!  It changed to “gentle pressure.”

My heart was changed that day also, as I developed a deep compassion for those who suffer pain, short or long term.

“Gentle pressure!”…A sign of God’s benevolence! Surprise!  Surprise!

See you next time...God willing! God bless!

TEST TRACK

                                                               

Have you noticed that many things we know and do are changing? There is re-imagined, redesigned, revamped, reopened, not to mention... redefined, if you follow my drift.

Orlando is a wonderful haven for theme parks, and this week Epcot inaugurated their new “Test Track” ride. I expect I’ll be visiting it soon to see how it has been re-imagined. I hear it’s an even more exhilarating ride, and has already received fantastic reviews as you are able to incorporate your own design into the vehicle.

My memory takes me back a while ago when I rode “Test Track” with my oldest granddaughter.  It was a ride that Disney imagineers created after visiting the GM auto testing laboratory. It allowed us to experience, in short form, the tests that an automobile must go through to perform on the highway. The ride went something like this: ascending steep terrain, downhill control, bumpy roads, 50 degree banked curves, hair-pin turns that test suspension and brakes at speeds up to 60 miles per hour. We were also subjected to extreme cold and heat tests, a misting of water to test corrosion and finally a fitfully high speed that ultimately stopped you in the nick of time before hitting a crash barrier. It was exhilarating and fun, my only fear being in the final high speed chase to the finale…and I wasn't certain what that was…until it came to a stop!

This morning I woke up with the image that life is much like the test track we experienced. Life takes us in many directions and situations, and it is our job to figure out our lives based on what we are in the midst of going through…sometimes  we like the results, and other times not. Life can be fun, fearful, and challenging, but it is our job to find a way to survive the bumps, bruises and tests of life, all along the way seeing the grand purpose of why we were created. Perhaps if we saw our lives more as a ride than a struggle, we would be able to laugh through the tough periods, and ease the burdens of not only ourselves, but also of others.

As the vehicle reached excessively high speeds, my granddaughter laughed with excitement, as I screamed with fear. The end result was the same…the end of the ride!

Next time I ride “Test Track”, I will remember her laughter and sit back and enjoy the ride. Some things take time. I thank her for this gift!

See you next time...God willing! God bless!

RE-IMAGINED SPACESHIP EARTH

One of the most recognizable icons at Epcot Theme Park in Orlando is the 18 story geodesic sphere located at the entrance titled, “RE-IMAGINED! Spaceship Earth”. I had visited it many times as “Spaceship Earth”, but in 2007 it became more interactive and “RE-IMAGINED” was added. I rode this awhile ago with my youngest granddaughter.

As we climbed the ball, I felt her loop her arm through mine, and grab my other hand with her free hand. Her nervousness was evident as we rode through the various stages of our planet’s development…a discovery of how each generation built upon previous generations…a celebration of human achievement!
It was not until we reached the interactive portion, where we had to choose what was important to us, that she let go, and became excited about  the choices we both were going to make for “our future”.  She wanted to choose the home as important to us, made of natural materials, and on the beach. Her favorite picture was of herself serving me a drink as we enjoyed the ocean view.
Her need for closeness in the beginning of the ride reminded me that children need us to hold them and gently guide them…Then all of a sudden they no longer need us as they become fully engaged in life. We step aside, and only surface again if their need for us reappears and we are called by love to be by their side once again.

Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor was a 37 yr. old Harvard trained brain scientist. That did not make her exempt from experiencing severe brain hemorrhaging from a massive stroke that left her unable to walk, talk, read, write or recall any of her life.

 An amazing mother “RE-IMAGINED” her daughter’s life after the stroke. She nursed her back to “communication” with love and insight. She actually began cuddling her grown daughter as if she were still a baby and would disallow people with negative energy from entering her daughter’s presence.
 8 years later with her mother’s dedication in helping her walk, read, write, and remember… along with Dr. Jill’s understanding of how the brain functions…came the result,  not only as a neurologist… but a neurologist with a book titled, “My Stroke of insight”, and a “RE-IMAGINED” view of the medical field.
Dr. Jill described it this way, “I believe the more time we spend running our deep inner peace circuitry, then the more peace we will project into the world, and ultimately the more peace we will have on the planet.
My granddaughter grew in her unique personality as we rode “Spaceship Earth”. She saw herself not as the fearful traveler that she was in the beginning, but one who was called out of herself to serve me that drink by the ocean. This is one of many times I have observed her joyfully serving others. With children like her, we are assured of living on a joyful “RE-IMAGINED! Spaceship Earth”.

See you next time...God willing! God bless!