Being the Bamboo in a Time of Great Change

It seems that everything is changing at breakneck speeds.  We may look outside and see clear skies, but a few hours later we witness rain.  The same thing applies to our personal lives.  We may feel on top of the world one moment, but when we open our mailbox, we discover an unpaid bill and that throws our good mood in the gutter. 

Even the positive people in the world have bad days. 

Why?  It is quite simple.  Life happens.  Life isn’t always a smooth ride.  Sometimes our river stumbles across turbulent waters.  We know we cannot alter the layout of the river, but we can chose how we react to it.  When we react to a situation, we usually overlay a previous experience onto the current encounter. 

That is why it is called a re-action. 

We are “reacting” to the previous experience as if it is the same encounter.   I remember some wise advice that my good friend Julie has shared with me:
If we overreact to a situation, it is about us.  If the other person flies off the handle, it is about them.  Think about this:  Everything happens to us for a reason.  There are Life Lessons for us to learn.   I have heard that our relationships are like personal mirrors.  They let us know what issues we need to work on.  For example, if there is a person in our life that is always angry, perhaps this is a clue that we need to work on our own issues of anger.  We can also learn a lot about life by studying our friend the Bamboo. 

When there is great wind, the Bamboo simply bends.  It doesn’t try to fight the wind.  Instead, it allows the wind to run its course.   This same wisdom can be applied to our lives.  Instead of trying to fight and control life, we can allow life to run its course.  If we try to fight change, we will only stress ourselves to the grave.  If you are feeling a negative emotion, ask yourself why you are experiencing this.  What you will discover is that your emotions have stories attached to them, and when you acknowledge your emotional state, you may end up releasing the negative recording.  Repressed emotional stories cannot stay repressed forever.  They will often come out when triggered.  That negative reaction that you are experiencing may not be as negative as you might think.  If we look at it from a higher perspective, we may come to understand that the negative experience may offer us gifts.  Just as the Bamboo doesn’t fight the wind we could apply the same philosophy to our lives.  We need not let the wind (life) try to break us.  If we are flexible, we will allow life to be as it is. 


Allowing life, not trying to control it, will set us free. 

What would happen if the Bamboo didn’t bend?  It would break.  We would break too if we didn’t bend (Allow).

Thank you, Bamboo, for your wonderful insights.

The Teachers of Unconditional Love

You may not know it, but we humans are truly blessed.  We are surrounded by Angels of Love.  I know what you are about to ask: 

“Who are these Angels of Love?”

These marvelous teachers are your pets.  Look into their eyes and you will see a love that is like no other.  Their love is truly unconditional.  They don’t care whether you are rich or poor, or that you are a world famous movie star, or that you may not be the snazziest dresser in town.  They love you just the way you are.  My wonderful cats not only love me unconditionally, but they remind me every day that unconditional love is who I really am.  In fact, I was born from a loving Creator.  There are absolutely no conditions for God’s love!

Since we are on the topic of Unconditional Love, I want to share a powerful touching story that my good friend, Julie, has written about this topic.  Enjoy.  It was written with love. :)

Peace, Love, and Light,

Terry Fatland

"Unconditional Love" by Julie Copeland

“The greatest gift that you can give to others is the gift of unconditional love and acceptance."  ~Brian Tracy

I hear this term frequently. I even use it myself. However I am just now really getting what it truly means.  To me, this isn’t just two words put together. These words are so powerful, so all encompassing that they are pure energy. These words trigger an emotional response in you on multiple levels when you allow it to. Open your heart and feel the words resonate as you use them. 

Some people radiate pure love to others.  Animals most certainly do. We recently lost a beloved family pet. Her name was Lily and she was a registered purebred dachshund. However, her value to us went beyond monetary value or registered worth because a paper said as much.  She wore many hats in our family. She was the loving mother to our other two dogs. She was a confidant of the very best kind. She never, ever told anyone your secrets.

Lily was a fierce protector, backing up the other dogs when they would bark at strangers or neighborhood cats and dogs.  Her favorite room was the kitchen. She loved to help you cook, always underfoot, always in the way. She would look up at you with those big brown eyes and hope you would drop something. We called her our little sous chef.

She was a valued member of our family. Most importantly, she was unconditional love. Her love for her family was pure and consistent, never varying. Lily had the most beautiful brown eyes that spoke to you, spirit to spirit. As you looked into her eyes you could see clearly into her soul. That window into her soul, that preview of what pure unconditional love truly is, was beautiful.

To me, that is an example of love in its purest form- strong, consistent, never ending, always there for you. Lily was not unusual in this. Unconditional love shines brightly and is all around you.  Just open your heart and let it in. I feel appreciation and love for this beautiful reminder to open my eyes and feel the love that surrounds us every day.  May you feel this blessing of love too.