The Path of Revolving Doors

Yes, when one door closes often another one opens.  And when that door closes we waste our time and energy if we insist on trying to force it back open. Some time goes by, you've continued on your path. Just ahead you sense something old and familiar yet you know you have moved on. As you approach this new door, you realize it is not so new afterall. It is quite familiar. The Light and Love and the Sound of the Calling compel your steps toward it.  You question and ponder, "What? I recognize this! This door was closed. I tried keeping it open, and it wasn't meant to be!" You move closer looking for a sign, a clue. You remind yourself yet again that you have moved forward, moved on.  If you go through that door wouldn't it be moving backwards.... yet, no, you clearly see you're still moving forward. You haven't gone back at all. The mysteries of life. How can decisions made to close a door move you forward to enter it yet again?  You look closer and see that it is indeed that same door, the same frame of energies, the same hinges of knowledge holding it in place. Approaching the threshold you hear the voice of your soul welcoming you to cross over, to enter.  The light, the colors, the warmth engulf you as you take your first steps not backwards but forward into familiar and yet new territory.  The paradox of life and love and learning. Time is timeless. Sometimes we think we have things figured out only to be reminded that in any given moment everything can change. We can dwell in the Land of Not Knowing and learn to be content with it, or we can fight it and bring undue stress and problems, or we can stay too long paralyzed by fear of decision and consequences. But know this: If you want to arrive at the end of this life with no regrets or as few as possible, make decisions not from a mind of fear but from a heart of love.

People in Our Lives

It has occurred to me with a fervent frequency in the past few days about how blessed I am to have the kind of friendships and people in my life that I do.  More and more there are those about me who have such vibrant souls of love, light, peace, joy and wisdom.  And paradoxically, those who have shown a more negative, angry, bitter, or unhappy way of looking at life have been falling away from my more immediate circle. Transparency is a beautiful thing in a relationship.

I See You ~

Sometimes it's what people don't say that tells you everything you need to know.  As I have learned to listen more and more to my intuition, you know that still, small voice, I am realizing just how accurate it is.  I have stopped second guessing myself for the most part. The more I have trusted what I pick up from someone's energy, the more I know who they really are.  Like one popular saying goes, "I can tell more from a person's energy field than what their words tell me."   The more I flex my intuitive muscle, the stronger it gets, the more accurate it is.

Giving Credit

Give credit where credit is due.  This was something I stressed to the students in business class year after year.  Not infrequently a student would want to use someone else's logo or byline or idea as their own or change just a small part of it to use as their own.  I would suggest that rather than plagiarize or "steal" what someone else had worked hard on or perhaps even paid someone to come up with, there were ways they could let it inspire them to come up with their own original creation.  And if nothing else, at least ask permission to use the part that they liked.  That would be the honorable thing to do. Oh yes it is true - there is nothing new under the sun.  And then there are legal ramifications to consider. In this day of internet, facebook, and all social media it is easy to take words, ideas and content from anywhere and present it as our own.  There is a fine line between what we have been taught, have learned, have experienced in life and want to share and pass it on in our own way with our own perspective, and taking credit for someone else's work, someone else's designs or words, or their intellectual property.  Just think about it. Before you do it. And if you find yourself on the receiving end of having your work being claimed by someone else, you need to politely and firmly address the transgression.  That may be enough.  I have been in this position a few times,and only once did I need to work with an attorney.  The other times the perpetrators apologized and did give credit where credit was due.  Two of them were innocent mistakes in that they misunderstood thinking my words belonged to someone else I did not credit.  They thought they were just passing on words that they liked.  I was indeed happy that my writing inspired them enough to share it but as a writer and a teacher I have spent many years and long hours, not to mention money, into my craft and earning a living.  It is just not right for anyone to claim any part of that as their own....unless they are listing me as at least part of the resource.  It isn't ego. It's integrity, accountability, responsibility, ethics.   I have seen someone take Gandhi's quote, "Be the change you wish to see in the world," and post it on facebook as their own by rewriting it as "If you want the world to change, you must be that change."  with their name listed after it.   We all make mistakes. And not every one is living consciously.  Those of us who know or who have learned such lessons earlier in life do a good service by leading the way, shining the light, speaking up. And so I have.  And believe me, this has been a life lesson for me.  I have often "given away my power," and just allowed it to happen because I did not want to upset anyone or cause a problem.  Or let it go just to be happy that some helpfulness or knowledge was being passed on to help make the world a better place, even if it was a bit deceitful.  But then I realized that wisdom infused with deceit is less than helpful and only spreads the negative energy of it. So, better later to have learned and practiced this than never, eh?