What I Learnt From My Missing Earring (a quick story)
This morning I thought I lost yet another favourite earring. My Kashmiri tiger eyes from Dal lake in Srinagar. I spent the morning searching for it and complaining and generally being upset, wondering how I always lose one of my favourite earrings.
Eventually I gave up and put the lone earring back into its container, only to find the other earring there. I picked it up quickly and looked at it in wonder, I had been picturing it for so long that morning - laying on a carpet, or outside in the driveway or in my yoga mat (retracing my day's events) and there it was as I imagined, but in its place in my cupboard. And then I started to laugh as it hit me - I hadn't even put it on - I had only put on one earring in the morning and I forgot about the other one.
So essentially I was searching for something that I already had.
It was only when I gave up, gave in, that I realised what I had been searching for was already there. I was so caught up in the search I didn't even think about whether I had the earring in the first place. My focus was only that I had to find what I had lost. That what belonged to me was mine and I wouldn't give it up.
Also, I think in some strange way I was determined to be disappointed - I had lost so many of my favourite earrings before - I just immediately believed this was the case too.
It made me pause and think for a moment. How caught up we get in old ways, our assumptions and the way we stop thinking and go blindly after something. A lot of the time the chase is futile. A lot of the time, the loss of something is just a lesson in letting go (because life is all about letting go).
If we took a moment to stop, we would realise we already have what we're searching for.
God constantly tells us to always look for His signs. These signs that tell us about life. I think they're in everything. Even in little things like searching for your earrings.
Eventually I gave up and put the lone earring back into its container, only to find the other earring there. I picked it up quickly and looked at it in wonder, I had been picturing it for so long that morning - laying on a carpet, or outside in the driveway or in my yoga mat (retracing my day's events) and there it was as I imagined, but in its place in my cupboard. And then I started to laugh as it hit me - I hadn't even put it on - I had only put on one earring in the morning and I forgot about the other one.
So essentially I was searching for something that I already had.
It was only when I gave up, gave in, that I realised what I had been searching for was already there. I was so caught up in the search I didn't even think about whether I had the earring in the first place. My focus was only that I had to find what I had lost. That what belonged to me was mine and I wouldn't give it up.
Also, I think in some strange way I was determined to be disappointed - I had lost so many of my favourite earrings before - I just immediately believed this was the case too.
It made me pause and think for a moment. How caught up we get in old ways, our assumptions and the way we stop thinking and go blindly after something. A lot of the time the chase is futile. A lot of the time, the loss of something is just a lesson in letting go (because life is all about letting go).
If we took a moment to stop, we would realise we already have what we're searching for.
God constantly tells us to always look for His signs. These signs that tell us about life. I think they're in everything. Even in little things like searching for your earrings.
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