When you walk through a storm...

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 As the old Rogers and Hammerstein song goes, "When you walk through a storm, hold your head up high, and don't be afraid of the dark."  Well today I want to encourage you to do just that, as many, many, many people find themselves in a storm these days, and what appears to be darkness is what is scaring the ever living daylights out of many.  I'm here to tell you that you have nothing to fear, and it's time that we all begin to hold our heads up high, and never be afraid of the dark.  Let's begin.

No matter what the circumstances one may find themselves in, it's important to note that each situation is a learning situation, as much as you hate me saying that.  I was having a discussion with an acquaintance yesterday and this very subject came up.  He wasn't at all wanting to hear my response, but how can you argue with the fact that no matter what we go through, we will learn something from it.  Well unless you simply fight it tooth and nail, and you refuse to see things for what they are, and what they aren't.  Remember that most of what we perceive as real is only an illusion, created with our mind, our thoughts, and what appears to be death and destruction, is really building blocks for what awaits us, which is wonderful to say the least.  I know how difficult it is to remember this fact when you're tossed about by the storms round us, but failure to realize your significance is what ultimately keeps you in the grips of the storm, and this can only lead to distress beyond imagination,

The one question that comes to mind is how do you rise above the storm?  Well the answer is simple, but it all begins with how you see things, how you believe, and whether or not what you perceive to be in front of you is actually in front of you.  We as humans often make things out to be worse than they are. We formulate thoughts and feelings base on what we see, and instead of depending on the truth that resides inside each of us, we accept what we see, and take it as truth.  We need to understand that troubles that seem to be real are still only illusions.  Now I get how crazy this may sound, but not everything that goes bump in the night is meant to destroy us, or get us worried, or even, dare I say it, loose sleep over it.  We've all heard the term make a mountain out of a mole hill.  Why is it that there are people who will blow things up way out of proportion?  If something happens without notice, it is somehow the end of all civilization as we know it.  Now I know that sounds dramatic, but let's be real for just a moment.  We all know people who are always running around saying the sky is falling.  No matter what is happening it somehow has to be catastrophic, and there's nothing in this world that will stop what is coming, or what is happening.  We've seen this happen time and time again, and we find ourselves asking this one question:  Are you an idiot?  Why are you the only one who seems to be going through the very same thing time and time again?  Why does this little black thunder cloud just occupy the space above you, and no one else?  Why in tarnation can you not see good, and only bad?  Well the answer to all these questions is that this person refuses to see who and what they are, why they are here in the first place, and the fact that growth comes from experience, and experience is only going to happen, like everyday of your life, duh!!

When we refuse to learn from our experiences, from our mistakes, from our everyday actions, we are doomed to repeat things over and over again until we finally learn what we were supposed to learn in the first place.  I know it seems like I am going over the same thing time and time again, but I'm trying to get you to see that storms are not bad, they are really, really good, if you will see the significance of them being in front of you.  The reason it should be simple to hold your head up when you're in the middle of the storm is because you are good enough, strong enough, smart enough to get through it.  Remember you are never going to be put into a situation where you do not have what you need to get out of a situation.

There's a very old saying that people never plan to fail, they simply fail to plan.  If you had a crystal ball that was able to tell you everything in advance do you think it would change what you might or might not do in any situation?  If you had all the answers right now, if you knew the outcome to everything in your life, would there be any storm that would worry you?  Come on you can say it, the answer is no.  No you would not be worried, no you would not be scared, and no, you would not care about much of anything.  Why?  Because you already knew the outcome.  Well, let me ask you this: don't we already know the outcome?  Don't we realize that when all the dust settles we will be victorious?  This is why you can hold you head up high in the middle of the storm.  This is why you need not be afraid of the dark.  We win, we win, we win!!  

I've been through a ton of crap over the last three years.  To be totally truthful, there have been days when I just wanted to say"F" it.  I cannot sit here and tell you that I am immune to the challenges of life.  I can't sit here and tell you that I am perfect in regards to how I handle difficult situations.  I am after all just as human as each of you.  But what I have done is look past what my eyes might be seeing, and instead look into my soul, my spirit, my true essence, and see what is really truth, and not just illusion.  No matter what has transpired over the last three or so years in my life, I know deep inside that I am still me.  I am still perfect in my design.  I am that I am, and I will complete those things that have been ordained for me to complete since the beginning of time.  

When it comes down to it, failure is not an option.  This is not some "Rah Rah" moment where we all stand up and cheer as a way of getting past obstacles.  This is a moment where you individually have to realize who you are.  This is the moment where you have to accept your greatness.  It is only knowing your significance that is going to allow you to ride out the storm.  I will never tell you that storms are gone forever.  As long as we are part of this human existence, we are going to be face to face with storms.  It's how you handle these storms that is going to separate you from those who choose to be buffeted by them, and not get out in front of them, and those who simply hold their head up high, and are no longer afraid of the dark.  

Take some time and reflect on what I am saying.  Take some time to accept your greatness.  Take some time and realize that illusions may seem real, but they will only be real to the degree that you allow them to be.  Don't allow things to control you, you need to begin to control them.  Watch what you say, watch what you think, and watch what you are feeling.  I know people will say they cannot control what they think or feel, but you can, and you need to.  When tossed about, go to your happy place, and we all have them, but go to you happy place and put the thoughts of the storm right out of your mind.  Your happy place might be just having time with your pets.  When I am with my two dogs I'm not thinking about the crap going on around me, I'm thinking about them on my lap, giving me kisses, and how very much I love them.  Hell, if you're going through a storm grab your pets and forget bout life for just a few short moments. Trust me the storm will not seems big.  

We control what is happening, and we are not controlled by what might be happening around us. It's all how you look at things, but let me encourage you to start looking at things the right way, and not just the "human" way.  Look past the storms and know that they are nothing more than an opportunity to get closer to the real you, the authentic you, the you that God created, and the you that never ever has to be afraid of the dark.