Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Forks in the road

When we come to a fork in the road, it's not always easy to decide which path we should take.  And even once we do decide, sometimes we may travel part way down the path and realize it's not the path we should be on.  When that happens, we often judge ourselves harshly for the 'mistake' that we made, engaging in endless hours of negative self-talk, wasting precious energy on something that's already over and done.  Sometimes we even try to convince ourselves that it is the right choice, even when our guts are roiling and our hearts have stopped singing.  We continue on, afraid of what others may think or say, hesitant to acknowledge that what we were so dead sure was the best choice, no longer is.

In light of my decision to move to Nashville, and especially now that things have picked up speed in that direction, I find myself thinking back over other choices, other forks in the road, and remembering those that worked and those that didn't go as I thought they would, and I've been taking notice of how my life has been affected by all of them, and how each choice has brought me to this exact point in my life. So I thought it was particularly interesting that the message that came through during my healing circle in Nashville spoke to my thoughts.

"Remember that not every opportunity that is shown to you  is an opportunity you are meant to take.  Sometimes it is a matter of discernment.   We are showing you many things, and asking you to discern which is right for you and which is not for you.  Simply because a door opens doesn't mean you're supposed to walk through it.  Sometimes you're simply supposed to look to what's beyond the door to see if you are interested.  See if it fits, and then, walk past, without walking in.  For if you don't look at a number of things, how do you know that what you've finally chosen is what's really right for you?

And if, per chance, you walk through a door thinking that you were meant to walk through and continue along that path, and something in your gut is telling you, 'This is wrong!  This isn't quite right! This isn't comfortable.  It doesn't feel right,'  pay attention to that feeling and don't hesitate to say, 'I've had enough. This is all I need.  I don't need to travel this path completely to the end.'  Just simply know that what you got as you traveled the path for as far as you did was exactly what you needed!  Sometimes, in order not to regret that you didn't take a path, you need to take the path and find out it wasn't what you wanted.  That way, you're not worried about, 'What if I had done it?   What would have happened had I tried that?'  So sometimes you need to try so you can figure out it isn't what you thought it was.   That isn't a failure.  You didn't make a mistake.  You did exactly what you needed to do for your own knowingness to know that that path isn't the path for you.

...We want more for you and more from you. ...We only ask that you pay attention;  to look at the signs, the signals, the messages. Discern what is best for yourself.  Feel with your heart, with your gut.  You need a blending of logic and reason and knowingness.  Feeling.  It can't be all  head and no heart, or all heart and no head.  You will, always then, make more bad choices for yourself than good.

And I say that because you are used to saying 'good' or 'bad.'  In truth, no choice is good or bad.  A choice is simply a choice.  And you  make the choice because you need to learn what comes from making the choice.  And even though, oftentimes, when you make what you call a mistake, you see the results of that 'mistake' causing you more pain and discomfort. More confusion.  A more difficult path rather than an easier one.  You see it as something being wrong.  But I will say to you, that what you have gone through is exactly what you needed to go through, because those lessons that you learned were important lessons to take you further.

So do not judge your choices, or the outcome of your choices.  Only see them as choices, and the results as the results you needed in order to be able to move forward in a bigger and better way.  It is important for you to remember this."

I still have a lot of choices ahead of me as I make this transition from being who I've been in Pittsburgh to whatever awaits me in Nashville.  Even though this message was just what the participants in the Nashville circle needed, I also know it was God's way of reminding me that no matter what choices I make, no matter which fork I take, I'll always get exactly what I need, and end up exactly where I'm supposed to be.

5 comments:

  1. Ain't it the truth :) Especially when I used to look back and think that my marriage was the biggest "mistake" of my life! I now know he was a great blessing. I learned so much more than I ever could have imagined. I love who I am today, and know I could not have gotten here without him. He taught me what I needed, and I only hope I taught him what he needed, as well. Life is extraordinary!

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    1. Funny how that works. And aren't you glad that you're in a place now, that you can recognize and appreciate the 'mistakes' of the past? I know I am!

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    2. Absolutely! Thank you for opening the door and showing me the way to get there.

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  2. GEEZ we must be on similar paths here!! I am just getting used to my foot levelers as well!! Changing the shape of my feet and body, finding the right shoe for these things to fit in, aches and pains when wearing them, when not wearing them.... and MANY changes going on around me!! Thank you for making better sense of what is happening!!! sometimes you are like Yoda from Star wars! ha!!

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  3. You're welcome. I'm just glad that my own journey, and what I am learning, is of use to others! Like I said, I often wonder after I hit the 'Publish' button if there's anything there worth sharing. So thank YOU for the validation. It's greatly appreciated. And I like the Yoda comparison, as long as I don't have to have all the wrinkles! thanks, Teresa!

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