It occurred to me recently that emotions and fears are like currents in a river.  Once you are caught up in them you get swept away by the sheer magnitude of their power.  Like a swimmer caught in a riptide, you feel trapped and helpless to escape and the more you struggle the further away you are pulled from the shore.

What if you could float above the currents? How would your life change if you stayed out of the water or could sail across it?

There is always something available to fear or fret about in life.  If you can’t think of something just turn your TV on for five minutes; the media will be happy to tell you how bad things are and how afraid and helpless you should feel.  Negativity is contagious  – you’ve heard the expression misery loves company, right?

No matter how much you worry, it will not change your life or make your problems disappear.  Fear and worry breed more fear and worry creating a giant whirlpool that cycles around and around and goes nowhere.

Have you ever noticed there are some people who do not indulge in that kind of thinking?  They focus on what they want to happen or what they can make happen.

They see the pitfalls and they see the fear but blithely ignore or move past them– their eyes are on the horizon and their goals.  They appear calm and at peace with life; they make mindful decisions to shift consciousness.

There is a story in the book Illusions by Richard Bach that illustrates this perfectly:

Once there lived a village of creatures along the bottom of a great crystal river.  Each creature clung tightly to the rocks on the bottom and resisted the current, which is what they were taught to do.

One day, one brave creature said,  “I am tired of clinging and will let go and see where the current takes me.”

The rest of the village told him he was a fool;  he would be smashed on the rocks and killed.

He let go, and at first, tumbled into the rocks  but refused to cling to any.  Eventually the current lifted him up and away.  And creatures downstream, seeing him float by, declared, “It is a miracle, a creature like us that flies!”

He told them,  “the river delights to let you fly free if you only dare to let go.”

Like this brave creature, all you need to do to fly free is take a risk; let go of the rocks that represent your old beliefs and attitudes and rise above the currents into the flow of life.  Make conscious choices about how you will invest your precious life energy each day and in each situation.  The world will most likely tell you it is a bad idea but later will recognize you as the miracle you truly are and maybe even be inspired to join you on the journey!

Call to Action:

Choose one challenge you have been struggling with and make a commitment to find a new perspective. Start fresh and be willing to let go of everything you think you know.

Close your eyes breathe deeply and imagine you are floating high above it all looking down.  Bring your challenge to mind and look at it from this altitude.

What do you see that you could not see before?  What is different for you?  What else is possible?

Allow these answers to float effortlessly into your awareness.

Now commit to a powerful shift by choosing your new perspective and reinforcing it each time the challenge threatens to overwhelm you.

Watch yourself shift.