There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.
– Albert Einstein
Learning from A Course in Miracles, I have chosen to live my life as if everything is a miracle. Seeing everything as miracle is accomplished by removing any obstacle to the presence of love. Live your life with love, and you will remember this truth, giving and receiving are one and the same.
The fast track to wholehearted, miracle mindedness is forgiveness. In “light of the world” events, you’ve likely heard plenty about the importance of forgiveness. What I have realized is that the healing power of for-giving is a way of removing the obstacles to love’s presence, thus opening one up to the experience of miracles.
This past week my brother, who will turn 54 next month, got married.
Truthfully, he’s been in relationships before that have spoken about marriage and somehow he always seemed to “dodge the bullet”. This was to be his first marriage and I wasn’t sure it would actually come to fruition.
During the summer, I received a call from his fiancée and she asked if I would say a blessing on the wedding. I verbally agreed and secretly wondered; can I do the blessing when I still have a question in my heart about the nature of marriage?
So, being a student of removing obstacles to love in order to see everything as miracle, I began asking myself, “What are my obstacles to giving this blessing?” “Where am I not allowing love in the form of giving and receiving to happen in my life?” “Am I being an overprotective sister?”
Through asking these questions of my own heart, I was able to recognize some ideas I’d created about relationships that are no longer in alignment with my commitment to forgiveness and living in the miracle mind. I also found some areas of my where I believed I was thinking and acting in a desperate way in my own relationships. This isn’t a part of my life that I wanted to take a look at, but in order to move forward with love and oneness for my family, I found that I had to forgive myself.
I was, being asked to bless the wedding of a couple in love and I knew I needed to “let my story go” for all of us. The request to offer the blessing was actually an opportunity for forgiveness of myself. Using a process, I call, The wHolyShift, www.thewholyshift.com along with some wonder-full coaching from my friend, I was able to forgive myself and clear the way for love. Through that forgiveness of myself, I also forgive all of us, opening the door to miracles.
My brother did get married! Our whole family considered it a miracle. The heart knows. It expands and extends in the face of Love.
The miracle of their union was reverberating throughout the weekend. When two or more people gather, what is created is the sacred space that I call “relationship”. Last weekend, two families came to-gather to witness the truth of union, you and I as one, and we immediately fell in love with each other.
Each of us, glowing with love, beaming it out and having it received and sent back. Everyone coming together for Love, as Love, with Love. Imagine this much love happening with that many “perfect” strangers. Not only did we all feel this upwelling of love, but people around us were also experiencing it.
After the rehearsal dinner on Wednesday evening, the entire family went to the bar to continue the party. Little by little, folks retired to get a good night’s sleep. As it got later in the evening my husband, sister, brother in law, two of my parents, and I were still there and I noticed two women at the bar finishing up the evening and paying the bill.
They’d been there for the entire time we were and I’d noticed both of them previously. When I looked over I had this intense feeling of love and appreciation for them as women and felt connected to them in sisterhood. I remember, thinking to myself, you go girls! You be you and rock the world.
The next thing I know, I’m sitting facing my family and one of the women, who must have been feeling the vibe of L-O-V-E that was in the room and beaming out from my family, came around to the side of my seat and bent down to give me the most amazingly loving embrace. Mind you, she had to walk around to the side of my chair, lean down and without missing a beat, I embraced her as well. We were in a full body hug for about 10 amazing seconds, enough time to feel each others hearts beat. Without a word she stood up and walked out.
My sister was in shock! What just happened? Do you know her? How do you know her? Is anyone else freaking out??
My family was in shock. My response was no I don’t technically know her but I could feel her. Love needs no words, you just recognize the feeling and give it out. In the giving is the receiving.
The miracles didn’t stop there.
The next day, my husband and I took a long walk on the beach. The weather was threatening a hurricane, so almost no one was on the beach. We saw a pier in the distance but it seemed like it took an eternity to get there, the more we walked, the further away it seemed to be.
While walking, I said, “Wouldn’t it be great if we could find a shell that is unique to this part of the ocean? We can bring it back to our friend who knows all the technical names of shells and he will be delighted!”
Interestingly, there were very few shells on the beach that day. I said a silent prayer, thanking the universe for bringing us the perfect shell in the perfect way. Then, I could relax and trust that if it was meant to be, a shell would come to me.
About 5 minutes later, we see, a little girl walking toward us with her arms out stretched. She has the whitest, curliest hair and the clearest bluest eyes I have ever seen. On her pink t-shirt was the picture of the “little mermaid”. She didn’t say a word just extended her arms further and gestured her with her hands to take what she was offering… two lovely shells, one for each of us.
The wedding was a celebration of joy, love, diversity, and oneness. At the end of the night, I realized I’d never spoken the blessing. And ultimately, I also realized, the union had been blessed nevertheless, because, love doesn’t’ need words; it only requires an open heart.
Forgiveness paves the way, it opens your heart, it removes obstacles to love’s presence. It allows you to experience miracles in your everyday. You’ve got nothing to lose but heartache.
Moral of the story, Be the Love and you will See the Love.
#loveistheway #getintheway #ideasworthspreading