Richmond, VA

Merry meet Friends!
Michelle here, bringing lots of love and light!

"Progress is rarely a straight line.  There are always bumps in the road, but you can make the choice to keep looking ahead." ~ Kara Goucher

"Never let a stumble in the road be the end of the journey." ~ anonymous

"There will always be bumps in the road...but if you stay positive and believe that you can get through it, you will." ~ Savannah Rose Neveux

"There are no mistakes; everything- even bumps in the road - provides a lesson that's necessary for us to evolve, and to get wherever it is we need to be." ~anonymous

As I was preparing for work on yesterday, I decided to wrap my hair as I will often do.  One side was smooth and exactly as I wanted it, the other was twisted and crooked.  As I worked with the twisted side, pulling, tugging and tucking, it looked better than the smooth side.  I laughed to myself and thought, "Isn't life just like this?  We go along with things running smoothly (seemingly) and then we hit some bumps, twists and turns which, in the end, are for the betterment of our lives."  I could have taken it down and started again, which is sometimes necessary, but in this instance, I would have missed this lesson.  The lesson: work with the bumps and twists of life that challenge us.

Life doesn't always proceed exactly in the way we have planned and even if it does, it doesn't proceed without some obstacles. "The beautiful thing about setbacks is, they introduce us to our strengths." said Robin Shanna.  But that will only happen if we don't allow the setbacks to paralyze us.  Ed and Deb Shapiro expressed it this way: "When you hit that unexpected bump in the road, remember that it is only a bump, not a mountain.  Go over it or around it but make sure you keep going."  Perseverance is defined as steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success.  If we plod on we will reach our goals.  

It is easier to give up than to keep going.  There is such satisfaction in completion though, isn't it?  When I was jogging, my daughter advised me to start with the amount of time I could and every other day increase by one or two minutes.  That advice was extremely helpful to me.  I started with four minutes and little by little increased my time to fifty minutes.  It didn't take as long as I imagined it would have.  Continuing increased my capacity to continue.  Working through obstacles when encountered will do the same.  Each time one works through something, one will find it not so difficult the next time and may actually look forward to the challenge.

When I was growing up my grandfather, when met with an obstacle, would always say, "Carry them before the board.".  "Them" being whoever stopped the process of getting the desired outcome. Perhaps this is where my perseverance originated.  When my oldest daughter was soon to graduate high school, Howard University, which was her first choice, had not offered any scholarship.  She was number 5 in her class.  I called Howard's finance department and I was told there was no money.  I asked to speak to whomever was over that person.  I was told it wouldn't matter because, again, there was no money.  I insisted and was given a supervisor who told me the same thing.  I persisted until I was given a director who sent essay questions for Zakiya to choose.  Long story short: Zakiya was given a scholarship that included tuition and room and board as long as she maintained a "B" average, which she did.

I told that story to other mothers whose children needed money and was told there was none.  Our lessons are not only for us but for others we can help.  Bumps in the road that allowed me to see and use my strengths that I wasn't aware I had, all because I kept going. No one wants to have hiccups along the path that we travel.  We probably all prefer smooth roads and we do get them at times.  But it is in the heat that change occurs.  "The glassblower knows: while in the heat of beginning, any shape is possible.  Once hardened, the only way to change is to break." ~ Mark Nepo, The Book of Awakening; meditation for February !9th.  Sometimes we may have to be broken in order for change to happen but we don't stay broken, we become whole.  Allow the bumps in the road to get you where you need to be and and to let you see of what you're made.  The bumps are only temporary but, oh so necessary.

Until next Sunday,
Merry part and merry meet again,
Blessed be,
Gypsi Mama Michelle