Having It All
Part 1
by Keith Varnum
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Why Some People Make the Leap -- and Others Don't
We are each beings of light. Within that light are all the colors of the rainbow -- all the aspects of God and humanity -- all the power of our natural spiritual abilities. Why do some of us open to the full spectrum of our magnificence and power? Why do most of us continue to see only black and white?
My Dad was colorblind his whole life. He was a "good" man -- faithful husband, dutiful father, respectful son, hard worker, trusted employee, solid citizen, on the school board, town council, church elders -- hell, he was even the Mayor of the city -- but he only saw the world as various shades of gray.
He often asked me as a child what color different flowers were. I'd describe to him the plant I perceived as best I could. As a child, I often wondered why he chose not to see all the colors of the rainbow of life.
Too many choices?
Funny, I always saw his colorblindness as a choice, a decision. I could feel my father's fear of being bombarded with too many colors to look at -- too many attractive choices, too many exciting paths to follow in life. I could feel his relief, his comfortableness, in not seeing too many attractive possibilities -- and in doing so, not having to choose between too many intense passions and divergent options.
I cry for my father and all the other men, and women, who choose to limit their exposure to disappointment and frustration in life by limiting their vision -- who decide to be safe, rather than sorry, within their gray skies and gray walls. I cry out of love -- and understanding.
I know why they look away from the alluring bright lights, the captivation of the dazzling dawn, and the frighteningly brilliant hues of a fiery sunset. They are scared of bring snared, captured, by the wonders of the world if they acknowledge the infinite magic of each moment, the aliveness of unchecked spontaneity, the wild electricity of every life encounter.
They feel risk where others see adventure. They feel threat where others see opportunity. They feel danger where others see liberation.
Adventure or risk?
Why are some people excited by life's banquet and others terrified? Our openness to life's bounty is determined by the decisions we make along our journey -- decisions about what we can "safely" handle, what we can "pragmatically" create, what we "realistically" deserve. Our freedom to grow and be happy comes from discovering and re-making those choices, mindsets and self-images -- about who we are and what life is really about.
What do you think life is really about?
What do you think is the purpose of life? And do your actions flow from that perspective? Do your life choices flow from what you think is the meaning of your life? Or does your behavior in life actually reflect a different set of beliefs?
One of my teachers observes, "You can tell what a person really believes by watching how the person acts, not by listening to what they say." A person's behavior -- personal everyday choices -- reveals most accurately what they really believe is central and important in life. We often sincerely think we believe one way, yet we act in another.
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