Reach out and touch someone...
Remember that ad slogan for a phone company? Reach out and touch someone has a whole new meaning today. No longer is it just a phone call. In terms of spiritual service, reaching out and touching someone, without even being consciously aware of the lingering effect, is largely what service is all about. I’ve written previously about how little we are aware of the effect we have on others, which is why it’s so important to remain conscious of what we think, say and do at all times. Someone is always watching and listening!
Recently I went for my regular manicure and foot treatment at the same spa I’ve been going to for months. This time I was enjoying the experience with my sister. After a few minutes chatting with the staff, the conversation between us turned to Buddhism. While my sister went off to do her own treatment, I continued to enjoy what turned out to be a rather long conversation with my manicurist about spirituality, the afterlife, Buddhism, meditation and so on. I invited him to speak as if I knew nothing about that world and at his gentle prompting, agreed that it just might be interesting for me to research Buddhism (its origins, scriptures and parables) to enlighten myself further. (To be fair, I did give him my business card and told him about my published book and the work I do at the end of our session for which he was delighted).
However, the experience got me thinking about how necessary it is to remain open to all types of information and messengers, even revisiting former material as our consciousness changes. Ultimately, I know that we hear what we hear and learn what we learn as we are ready. I now feel ready to explore Buddhism a little; not to become a Buddhist, but to gather information I feel ready to embrace. No doubt this will build on the foundation of my basic principles rooted in the work of Paramahansa Yogananda (1893-1952) who started the Self-Realization movement in Los Angeles.
It’s a little dangerous to become stuck in one way of thinking. Ultimately, all messages worthy of their true spiritual clout say the same thing. It’s been this way through the ages. It’s just that messengers worthy of their real clout present this information in a way that brings enlightenment to the masses at specific times throughout the various cycles of passing generations. That’s how we evolve.
At some level we are all messengers. Being a messenger may be as simple as sharing a kind word or hug with someone; lending a listening ear to help those in need, passing on information we’ve learned in small numbers or sharing new ideas about existing information with larger audiences. The point is we are all connected. We feel this connection as we reach out and touch each other with information we feel compelled to share that lies at the heart of all of us. It’s called Truth. And though it may take various shapes and forms, the Truth always says the same thing that helps us resonate to a higher calling.
My heart to yours,
Vonne
