The gift

Gifts come in many forms. Sometimes, they arrive wrapped up in crinkly paper, shiny and sparkly, a big red bow on top, handed to us with a smile and an acknowledgement of love. Sometimes, gifts come in the words someone says that speak of their love and respect as they express all we mean to them and how much they care. Sometimes, a gift arrives in the form of a hug, a gentle touch, a kind word, a loving gesture.

We see these gifts. We feel them. We embrace them. They are welcome on our journey. Treasured. Valued.

Sometimes, though, we don't see the gifts we're given until after we've opened Pandora's box and felt our hearts beat with fear and trepidation. We struggle to face the truth riddled with the fear that it is all a mistake, we are a big mistake.

To keep ourselves from turning into pillars of salt we cry out in denial and blind ourselves to the gift of life revealing our beauty in every moment. We deny ourselves the joy of bathing in the essence of our brilliance, our magnificence, our birthright, because sometimes, the gift comes wrapped up in turmoil and angst, pain and sorrow, trials and tribulations. And we don't like pain and sorrow, loss and confusion. We don't like the downside of living life open to the elements.

My relationship with Conrad was that kind of gift. I couldn't see that in its unfolding I was being given the opportunity to grow, to smash through false beliefs and limiting behaviours. I couldn't see that in the turmoil and pain of that encounter, I was uncovering the gift of insight, of knowledge, of self-love.

Life is a gift that keeps on giving.

It never stops. Never ceases until our last breath. And even then, the gifts we leave behind are sprinkled through the memories of those we love as in their grief they learn to celebrate our passing through their lives.

Life is a gift.

Every moment a treasure worth exploring. Every experience a moment worth treasuring.

Last night, I spent a delightful evening with a friend whose wandering into my life has given me untold treasure, untold special moments. We met a couple of years ago at a fundraisers meeting. We chatted briefly. Enjoyed the conversation and agreed to get in touch and actually did.

Over the past two years we've had the occasional dinner, glass of wine, coffee. And through each visit, we've explored life and love, laughter and tears, growth and tearing apart of our beliefs that would keep us stuck in self-pity and self-denial.

As always, CP inspired my thinking last night. Asked the questions that opened me up to the truth of my journey.

Life is a gift.

Make no mistake. There are no mistakes in life. Just mistaken moments where we confuse the experience as the truth.

There are moments in my journey where I have ridiculed the possibilities, closed my eyes to my awakening, stubbornly clung to the debris of beliefs that would keep me from leaping into the void and claiming my right to fly.

Yet, even in my stubbornness, there are no mistakes. Every moment is a part of my awakening. Every moment is an opportunity to step courageously into the dawning of freedom, or to scramble back into the fear of shattering my illusions, challenging my beliefs. Every touch is an opportunity to embrace the mystical, or close myself off from the wonder of a brand new day lived in awe of life's benevolence.

And every moment is integral to this journey. Every moment counts in this one wild adventure of my life, exploring all there is to know and see and be.

Life is a gift.

Accept it. There's no gift like it.

The question is: Are you accepting the gift of life unfolding within you? Are you exclaiming over the possibilities of each moment, or closing your mind to the beauty of your truth revealed in life's dramas, in life's poignant, silly, sad or painful moments? Are you living this one wild adventure with passion, fearlessly claiming your right to be free?