Greetings,
A few moment’s ago I was presented with a possible venture, and adventure, that holds great promise and also looked quite complicated, daunting and even potentially dangerous. Immediately, I felt my nervous system pulsing between the dread of Eeek and the excitement of Ahhh. My being felt like a sky with bright sun on one side and dark storm clouds on the other.
I noticed this familiar front line response arising with a voice: “Whoa, I cannot do that.” “I cannot deal with that.” “I would be in way over my head engaging there.” “I would be toast if I stepped into that”.
And yet, this was followed by a quieter more subtle voice: “Can we really know that is true?” “Perhaps we Can do that.” “Perhaps we could create a transforming breakthrough there.”
I notice how many of us have all these pre-set ideas of what we can engage with successfully and what we must avoid at all costs. What if some of these notions are just stories and conclusions from past experiences that have no present time reality whatsoever?
What would our lives be like if we kept replacing “I can’t” with “I can” over and over again? What if the thought “I can” was firmly established at the front of the line?
What if our neurology’s first response to a challenge were thoughts like: “I can find a way there!" “I can handle that”, “I can deal with that”, “I can master that.” “I can easily navigate that complexity!” “I can find a way to cross that raging river and have a great time doing so!”
A few years ago, I did quite a challenging ropes course.
The first three stops on the course looked quite eerie foreboding. I approached each of them with caution, suspicion and weariness. I was clearly looking at them through the memory files of past experiences. I did end up succeeding at each one, and yet only very squeamishly and with out having much fun.
When I got to number #4, something had shifted in my reality. I found myself trying a different approach. I took one quick look at the scope of the challenge and shouted to myself inside: “I can do that”. I then quickly blurted to my group: “I am going first” and I threw all of myself at the task.
I then found myself easily and effortlessly doing the seemingly impossible. I was leaping from place to place like a forest monkey who had been doing it all his life.
I was on a roll. This experience was such an exhilarating rush. Somehow, the energy, certainty and boldness of an “I can” choice, made “I can” abundantly executable.
Ah, my neurology is now reconnecting with that biochemical reference point. That precise chemistry is there to be drawn upon as needed. Now, as I think back to the possibility that was presented to me this morning, I feel the vivid exhilaration of “I can”. I see myself taking a delicious deep breath, rolling up my sleeves and looking at how I can jump into that adventure.
I am now unfrozen and ready for action! I can do that too!
What can you do, really do, that you have previously thought was impossible?
We have already arrived. Yes! Welcome home to this here and now! This place is a place for Living who we are, and Living what we know. The words that show up here are not just pointers to something, they are the joyful expression of life on a roll living its arrival. Let yourself strut out on stage in the comments section. You are invited to let life Live through you here. Enjoy!
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About Me
- Bruce Terrell
- I see my expertise to be not so much about this subject or that subject, but more the navigation of the space from which all this arises. I am a student of what it takes to shift and surf, as Love, with great nimbleness and agility, through a diverse range of viewpoints and assemblage points. I am a explorer of the space which births everything and the space into which everything dies, of the dance between the infinite and the finite. As part of this, I am a ghost buster of sorts. I enjoy venturing into the dark haunted rooms of the planetary psyche, my own and others, and shining around the flashlight of awareness. I love finding old unexamined beliefs and memes there and shinning my flashlight new possibility there. Once seen these neurological ghosts loose their power. They turn back into light. Each time one is seen and busted, Living Our Arrival becomes more and more of an ecstatic flow.
Friday, September 14, 2007
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1 comment:
Great post, Bruce. Reminds me of that great Henry Ford quote: "Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're probably right." Yes, we can if we think we can! Thinking we cannot is just believing a lie we were told. Sometimes I ask myself: Do I want to believe what they told me or what I tell myself? But what was that venture/adventure you were presented with? I realize it's not crucial to the point of your post, but I can't stop wondering what it is, and thinking that the post would have been even better if that not insignificant detail were included. All in all, a good insight into the power of belief.
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