Dear Adi
I try to love my partner, but I’m not sure of his affection for me. Can the guides tell me what he really feels?
– Uncertain
Dear Uncertain,
The guides wish to tell you a story.
Once upon a time
there was a lovely young woman
who lived in a very small villageIt was her most heartfelt desire
to help others
who were less fortunate than herself
and so every day she took
her small basket
and walked by the river to the orchard
and there filled her basket with apples
On her way home
she stopped to give the apples
to anyone who asked
anyone who expressed hunger
anyone who crossed her path
She then retired into her simple hut
for the night
and the next day it all began again
Now this young woman
had never stepped beyond
the boundaries of her village
She was a good girl
a quiet girl
an obedient girl
and she knew that she gave freely
from her heart
But one night she had a dream
and in that dream she felt something behind her shoulders
and lo she had grown wings
and they lifted her high up above the village
and carried her across hills and fields
and soon she saw many other villages
and then mountains and lakes
and then great cities
and immense houses of worship
and finally the towering palace
of the Queen and King
So when her wings carried her
home again
home again
and she lay down on her straw mat
to rest
to rest
she looked at her hut with new eyes
for she had seen the world
and nothing would ever be the same
for their perfection
Now it was not that she had become less loving
less grateful
or less committed to caring for those in need
but because she had seen the scope
of the world around her
she knew she must explore
must reach beyond the small pathways of her tiny village
because otherwise she would never know
how much she could grow
which souls she could help
and just how many apples
could be carried in flight
And so the small hut no longer called her to stay
and the small basket held
not enough capacity
not enough capacity for all the fruit she wished to taste
and to share
and while the beauty that lay
before her each day
before her each day
was no less
she knew it did not serve her or anyone else
to remain without wings when they were there for her
if only she would allow her dreams
For you see
acceptance of the simplicities
and preciousness of every nuance of our lives
is indeed the highest wisdom
but to be deeply true
this awareness must come
from a vision that has been allowed to roam
and only then return
when the choice is very clear
Let us choose our straw mats
for their perfectionbut let us experience also a feather bed
so our choice will emerge from genuine humility
and not a poverty of experience
Let us sample every fruit our world ripens
before us
before us
so we may then decide
if it is apples we wish above all
to share
Our world is as wide and great
as we allow it to be
and yet at all times it lives utterly within our own hearts
We must first fly far
in order to truly see what is Home
and in this way
set free all doubt that may be hiding
in the dust of duty
unworthiness
and guilt
There are no walls on your village Dear One
and your wings await only
for you to awaken
from your sleep…
from GROWING WINGS
Dear Readers
We live in evolving times. As our awareness grows, so does our perception of old moralities. Notions of good and bad, blessings and sins, responsible and dutiful behaviours, all these are shifting in the winds of awakening.
Many of us have been taught since infancy that it is better to give than to receive, that if we are “good” we will put the needs of others first, that denial of the Self is an act of righteousness. Desires and pleasures become dangerous, and holiness lives in the willingness to serve.
While natural, free spirited giving may indeed emerge from the wisest of souls, authentic generosity of spirit is never achieved through denial of one’s own needs. It is rather a stage of openness that emerges only when our natural inner hunger has been already been met. We can only radiate and share love when we are secure and content in our own worthiness to receive it. In our spiritual aspirations, or in an effort to find love, many of us attempt to take a short cut to “selflessness” and find ways to bury our wants until we become so far out of touch with our heart’s desires, we don’t really know who we are.
This sweet story guides a loving woman toward the awareness of just how much freedom she denies herself, and offers her permission to rise up and fly on the wings of her desires and dreams. The beauty of the discovery that lies ahead for her is that she will not take away from her ability to love others by taking flight from limitation, but rather find a new power in it, fueled by authenticity and passion. By feeding the genuine needs of the Self, not only do we not limit ourselves, but we grant our hearts an even greater capacity to give…
much love,
ADI