Alignment, Costa Rica, light

Living in a Land of Butterflies and Pancakes

June 4, 2015

“If the only prayer you say in your whole life is ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.”  ~ Meister Eckhart

 

pancakes meghan gengeThe day-before-yesterday wasn’t fun. Well, it started out fun, but in the middle it was truly disgusting and smelly and darn right mouldy.

But I’m not going to tell you that story.

Some days here have been easier than others. There have been lots of non-human house invaders, personal challenges, and even a week of gastroenteritis. (For two people and one bathroom without walls, that was a real adventure!)

But I’m not going to tell you that story either.

We have left the known and landed in a world of the unknown. Every day something requires us to pay attention. And you know, it would be so easy to get lost in the hard.

I know someone who is lost in the hard. They believe that life is hard, that it is never going to go their way, and that the universe is out to get them. I know they believe this because they say it all out loud every single time I talk to them. They have said it so much that they actually can’t see all of the blessings that are in their life.

That is their story.

In the past when I have been focusing on the positive, the light, or the hope, I have attracted people who seemed to think that it would help me if they gave me ‘practical’ advice. They have seen my choice to see the positive side as proof that I am being naive or that I haven’t thought things through. They have felt the need to manage my expectations, or tell me the facts, or in some way bring me back to reality.

The reality is that I am now a fully-fledged grown-up. A grown-up who has a choice.

The day-before-yesterday wasn’t fun. But yesterday was.

Let me tell you that story!

Yesterday started with home-made chocolate chip pancakes. Yesterday held a two-hour laugh-filled conversation over the magical waves with a soul-sister. Yesterday had a storm that shook our house, and a hummingbird that hovered just outside of our window, staring at us eye-to-eye for a full minute. Yesterday held howler monkeys and the smell of a damp tropical jungle. Yesterday had butterflies.

I may not tell you the whole story about our life here, but I will tell you the story of our magical adventure. Because I believe that the more I tell any story, the truer it becomes.

So please don’t think I don’t see the mould or the dark or the hard, because believe me, I do. But when it comes down to it, we all have a choice in what story we tell. You can choose to see whatever you want to see. And my practice – every day – is in choosing to find the blessings.

So yes, it is sunny in my world. It’s rainy too. And it’s magical and intense and my ability to wonder is going into overdrive.

In my story, I live in a land of butterflies and pancakes.

And I’m good with that.

xo

 

 

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  • Lydia June 5, 2015 at 12:55 am

    Meghan, Please, never change your perspective. It is what inspires me and gives me hope. I’d take the chocolate pancakes and butterflies any day, and I don’t even eat chocolate pancakes. Blessings and love, Lydia