Quote of the Moment

"It's never wrong to hope, Byx," said my mother. "Unless the truth says otherwise."
- from Endling #1: The Last, by Katherine Applegate

Sunday, October 15, 2006

Fly

I'm sitting here, waiting for my thoughts and my cats to settle down enough to allow for some writing, so even though a month hasn't elapsed yet I thought I'd write a little blog entry/life update.

October is now officially half over. Okay, so it has 31 days and this is the 15th; technically, it's not half over until past noon tomorrow, or 15.5 days, but essentially it's half over. I have yet to hear from the library, by phone or form letter, though I was given to understand that the HR department moved with all the speed of a snail (a normal snail, not a racing snail.) So, of course, some corner of my mind is still eyeing my fast-dwindling finances and the approaching holiday season and asking whether I'll have to fold old newspapers into origami gifts this year or what.

This past Thursday, I went down to the shop where my mother works to attend a live radio broadcast. The shop is a New Age gift/book/whatever store, and the hour-long broadcast featured a psychometrist and an astrologer. The audience was, shall we say, less than anticipated. Counting myself, my mother, the store owner, the host's husband, and the sound guy from the station, we had round about five people. (I hope I don't have to spell that out for you... if you're reading this, I'm assuming you can count...) With the limited audience, four of us (the husband opted out) got on-air astrology readings and the opportunity to ask a question. When one has a mother in the audience, it's hard to hide the fact that one has indeed been wondering about whether or not one would soon attain a source of income, or if it would turn out to be a hellhole or a great opportunity or whether she should just move into the desert and start weaving straw hats for jackrabbits (not being able to afford a mule.) So, of course, before an unknown listening audience, I asked the question about the job. The overall answer seemed to imply that the job itself was pretty much a done deal - it was whether or not I wanted to accept it that was the issue. If it was just going to be a job-job, I was told, I shouldn't be afraid to say no if/when it was offered to me. There was also some stuff about me having mixed feelings about jobs of any sort. (Hey - I defy anyone to have the Universe nearly kill them and not be a bit reluctant to take a wrong step...)

The next night, I was back at the store for a five dollar class on Finding One's Life Purpose (or words and sentiments to that effect.) The lady offered much the same advice as other sources I have seen lately, from finance gurus to DVDs and self-help books. She also did an exercise that proved more interesting than it initially seemed. It went as follows: Write a question, any question, on a piece of paper. Then, write four or more sources to ask about it. They can be anyone or anything, living or dead, fictional or real, animal, mineral, vegetable, or spiritual. Donald Trump, your cat, your guardian angel, God... one man even asked Love and Light. Close your eyes and visualize each one as clearly as possible. Ask them your question. Write down any answer - anything that pops into your head after asking that question, silly or irrelevant as it seems. That's your answer, and it's supposed to work far better than one might think.

Okay, so we were paired off (so one could do the writing and the other could do the visualizing/asking), so I'm pretty much stuck doing the exercise anyway. For the question, I asked: What do I need to know to create more wealth? (This was angling toward what I was told the night before, how I really need to think more about what I want to create with my life rather than where I want to go to work - determine one, and the other problem solves itself.) For the sources, I wrote down beings with certain significance to me, none of them human. (I was paired with my sister; she didn't ask any humans, either. Irritating as she can sometimes be, we are sisters...) Hey, it was in the rules that there were no rules... So, I ask. I've been told previously at these events that even if you think you're just imagining it, treat it like the real thing. It all starts with visualizing, and visualizing starts with imagining. I'm getting some rather basic sensation/image/words things, for the most part. (It didn't help that other people were talking in the room, nor did it help that the inconsiderate people next door cranked their radio up while they cleaned, knowing full well there are classes on Fridays at that time.) My answers were Focus, Strength, Open Your Eyes, and Fly - this last from Griffin, whom I asked because I admire griffins. It came as an image of a griffin jumping off a ledge and soaring off.

The exercise ended, and the instructor queried people about their questions and answers, helping with interpretations. I offered mine (it's hard to back out of these things when your mother's in the room and won't let it lie), and the instructor, who had already proven that she was on a somewhat different wavelength when she was amazed that someone else had thought to ask an animal guide, decided that "Fly" was too vague, and explained to the class that you can always ask for clarification. What do you mean, it was too vague? I understood it perfectly. It means stopping second-guessing myself. It means picking a direction and heading towards it, knowing I will reach it if I keep going. It means, I said, jumping from the ledge and trusting that your wings will carry you. Yes, I actually said that, which is highly unusual for me, given my chronic shyness. I don't think it helped explain it much, though after class another student came up to me and thanked me for what I'd said, because he had drawn a blank on who/what to ask and I'd asked the same beings he would have asked had he thought of it.

Am I really that strange? Have years of daydreaming, fantasy, dreaming, and imagination really pulled my mind so far out of synch with the average human, that I see a relatively clear message where they see nothing? Do I really have to explain such things? Is it even worth the effort?

Ah, well... I suppose I ought to listen to my own advice here. I've been sitting on this ledge long enough. It's high time I figured out which way to point my wings... and jump.

5 comments:

kelly said...

I think you should check out a book i recently read that deals specifically with this topic of purpose. It's called Chazown by Craig Groeschel. It's been very helpful to me in figuring out my strengths and weaknesses and how to use BOTH in seeing where i should be and what i should do. good luck!

Jade said...

I don't think you are all that strange, but then... consider the source here *grin* I think our inner-beings have a way to communicate with each of us that is unique - I get visions and interpretations in my dreams that creep up out of nowhere, or sudden urges to go to the bookstore and buy a magazine that has the answers laid out in black and white (literally!)

and you know... the job just being a job can be a good thing to help finance your creative side, if the job is the right sort of job - predictable hours at a place that doesn't include ever having to hear screaming children or stocking gross canned items.

PeppyPilotGirl said...

I don't think you're strange either, for what it's worth; but, as Jade said, consider the source! ;)

All that matters is that you understand what you saw, that it made sense to you.

And I agree with Jade on the "just a job" thing. It can be a good thing.

Brightdreamer said...

ableknife - I'll have to look for that book. Thanks for the suggestion!

jade - The trouble is finding a no-skills job with set hours that won't eat my life. I've seen enough of retail to know that that's a rarity.

ppg - I keep looking for just-a-job jobs. Finding, or rather landing, one's a whole 'nother story...

Brightdreamer said...

UPDATE - Just got the kiss-off note in the mail today. (The kicker is that they make you print your own kiss-off note and include it when you mail in the application - talk about impersonal...) So I just submitted a couple online applications. I don't want to work in either place, frankly, but my account is dangerously low... besides, there's no law saying I have to accept a job that's offered, is there? (Assuming I'm even offered one - at this point, I'm in the you're-an-unemployable-piece-of-scum mentality...)