Really Living

If we don't change, we don't grow.

If we don't grow, we are not really living.

Growth demands a temporary surrender of security.

Gail Sheehy

Gazing back across the years, it seems as though I have led many lives within just one.  My life like a book has many chapters building upon the person I once was and who I seem to be today.  I would not choose to leave a bookmark in any special place, but rather move it along as the final chapters near.

It is no surprise to me, who I am today for I am very much the person I once set out to be.  I feel as though all of my masks have fallen away leaving me light enough to continue on my way.

Defining my self as a seeker, I have gathered knowledge primarily from books and mentors or teachers I acquired along the way.  There comes a time, however, when one must stop seeking and simply apply the wisdom at hand.  I no longer remember who said what or where or when, as all inspiration has melted into one. 

"And at what cost did this destiny come?" I ask of my self.  Ah, the price ... what did I pay?  "I paid dearly," the truth be told.  With every stage of personal and spiritual growth, as enhanced as I could be, I lost people, places, and things.  It puzzled me that others rarely could celebrate the existence of the awakened mind, but rather felt a need to turn away and leave me behind. 

By surrendering external things, I gained a deeper meaning of 'me'.  I found not only my spiritual self, but became one with all that is.   Divine Spirit is in all things surrounding me and the world is mine to behold.