Chapter 88. You can't be serious.
June 16, 2015
Laughter is the sound of the soul dancing. My soul probably looks like Fred Astaire. ― Jarod Kintz, Author
______
This past January I found myself standing alone outside in 20 degree weather, in the middle of a snow covered field, on a 200-acre farm near Green Bay, eating Twizzler’s and talking to three rocks. Well, I wasn’t really alone, because there was a cow about 200 yards away watching me with a most peculiar look on her face. And as far as the rocks go, I was doing all the talking, they weren’t talking to me. Because talking rocks, that would just be crazy.
It was while standing out in the field that I discovered God has an amazing sense of humor—one that actually had me laughing out loud.
You see, my being in the field had a purpose. It was part of the Shamanic healing retreat I was on, and the three rocks I was talking to were actually part of my “mesa” which is a portable altar or healing bundle that contain “kuya” or sacred stones I had brought with me. I was in the field as part of a ceremony intended to empower the stones with healing spirits from Mother Earth.
We were to go to an area on the land of our choosing to create the equivalent of a ceremonial sand painting. Using the land as our pallet we were instructed to mark out a large circle, and offer our stones to the earth by burying them within the circle allowing them to be empowered. We were encouraged to visit the area as often as we liked and to bring offerings and prayers until we felt the stones were ready to be unearthed.
It was on the second day, while visiting my site that I was shared a taste of God’s sense of humor.
Our teacher had informed us that it was not uncommon for magical things to happen—sharing how in the past one students stones disappeared entirely. Never to be found. So that we should simply be aware and observant as spirits love to be in communication with us.
Now because I was in Green Bay, Wisconsin in the middle of January my rather obvious artistic method of choice for marking out my circle the day prior, had been to walk a path in the snow, dragging my feet as I walked to push the snow away from the earth below, exposing a trail of grass as I walked. The resulting circle was about sixty feet in diameter. And after I had walked the path three times clockwise (the same direction the energy in our chakras spin—duh!), I had said a few prayers and then walked to the center of the circle where I made an offering of three pine cones, before clearing away the snow to bury my three stones.
I returned to the site to easily find the circle I had marked. I stood silently in the sunshine and breathed in the crisp air, as I offered prayers to God, my angels, guides and the spirits of my ancestors. And I have to say, as I stood there, recalling the teachers instructions, along with my heightened anticipation because of the spiritual work we were doing, I was expecting something magical to happen.
So after finishing my prayers I looked back upon the ground, and as I stood there surveying the area I had marked out the day prior, I suddenly began to chuckle. Because in my head the thought occurred to me, Gee if I could find a hundred bucks out here in this field, now that would be some kind of magic! Knowing full well I didn’t really think that I was going to find that kind of cash, but as I began to retrace my steps around that circle, I did momentarily find myself looking down around the ground as I walked. Who knows?
But to my surprise what I saw as I walked around again, was a deer print right next to one of my footprints from the day before, only this print looked fresher than mine. And as I walked, I began to notice more deer prints. Around my circle in the snow. The deer that had to have come out here the night before, had walked my entire circle right along side of my own steps. Wow! How cool was that? I actually did have something magical happen out at my stones. So I began walking back to the retreat center anxious to tell everyone what I had seen, when God decided to deliver the punchline.
As I was walking back it suddenly was as if God had put its hand on my shoulder and stopped me, because I stopped and stood there momentarily motionless. And I had a thought, and I began to laugh.
If the deer that had been walking the path around my stones, had been a male, then it would have been a buck. And given there were probably at least a hundred paw prints or more in the snow—I guess you could say I found a hundred bucks!
For me the answer was clear. When you’re getting caught up too much in the seriousness of life, in the day to day living, and you’re making your requests of the Divine to please help you out with all of your problems. God’s trying to tell us its not all so difficult. If we just believe and we just trust. To me it was a message to lighten up. Laugh. Enjoy all of life. Because it’s really been made for your enjoyment. And when the tough times roll around, relax, take time to laugh, because even that has a purpose.
The bottom line is this: Don’t take yourself and your emotions too seriously. That’s how I approach Parkinson’s. If you have a sense of humor about it, Parkinson’s won’t rule your life. The most important heart connection you can have with yourself - just you and yourself - a heartfelt sense of humor.’
Humor can’t be described in words. It arises in our heart and a smile appears or laughter comes out of our mouth. It brings a new vision and perspective to everything. We don’t have to take this short life—with all its challenges and demands—so seriously. Especially knowing that ultimately we will have to drop all of it and leave this life, as in the Tibetan saying, The brief time that we have in this world would be well spent trying to wake up from seriousness.
More to come.
Tremors in the Universe is available in e-book, paperback and hardcover through Balboa Press @ http://bookstore.balboapress.com/Products/SKU-000956591/Tremors-in-the-Universe.aspx or at http://www.tremorsintheuniverse.com
A portion of the authors proceeds are being donated to the National Parkinson Foundation and the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research
Tremors in the Universe Copyright © 2015 by Robert Baittie
Follow me on Twitter @RobertBaittie
