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Copyright © 1997 by Alan Cohen
All rights reserved. Inquiries should be addressed to
Hay House, P.O. Box 5100, Carlsbad, CA 92018
Earthlight Magazine / Books
/ Home
Copyright © 1997 by Alan Cohen
All rights reserved. Inquiries should be addressed to
Hay House, P.O. Box 5100, Carlsbad, CA 92018
One of my favorite hiking trails on Maui leads to a magnificent
hidden waterfall far off the beaten path. The path to the waterfall
begins as an offshoot of a main trail in a county park. One day
as I set out on the waterfall trail I noticed that county officials
had posted a sign, "End of trail." As I stepped over
the sign onto the fun trail, I chuckled to think that what was
advertised as the end of the trail was really the beginning of
the trail. If hikers simply heeded public signs, they were led
to believe their hike was over. If, however, they paid attention
to their inner guide, they would discover that the hike was just
getting good.
Sometimes in life it appears that we are at the end of
our trail, when we are really at the beginning. If you take your
direction from social signs, you will just follow the herd and
be programmed by other people who think for you, and are guided
primarily by fear. But if you follow your joy-inspired inner voice
of guidance, you will be led to experiences that far surpass any
the signmakers post. Buddha said, "To see what few have seen,
you must go where few have gone."
On a cute TV sitcom, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Sabrina
must pass a test of true love to rescue her boyfriend whom she
has accidentally turned into a toad. Sabrina's initiation brings
her to a swinging rope bridge over a fiery chasm, where her beloved
awaits on the other side. The bridge is burning, and if Sabrina
is going to get to her young man, she will have to make a leap
of faith, now or never. On Sabrina's side of the bridge are two
signs. "True love" points over the bridge to her boyfriend,
and "Safe Path" points back from where she came. "Maybe
you should just take the safe path!" her boyfriend suggests.
"No way!" Sabrina answers, "That just leads to
the suburbs."
Often our true path is not the apparently safe one - but
if we examine the "safe" path, it leads only to deadness
and limitation. The only real safety lies in being true to our
own selves. What does your heart tell you is real for you? If
you were to allow your authentic self to come forth, what would
you be doing differently? The only quality of character that will
guide you reliably through the many changes happening in and around
you, is realness. Trust who and what you are, and the universe
will support you in miraculous ways.
My friend Donna Lynn had been seeking more fulfillment
in her work, and when her company offered her a position on the
night shift at a higher salary, she took it. While she had more
leisure time during this shift, Donna Lynn noticed that the night
cleaning crew was throwing away toilet paper rolls with toilet
paper left on them. Donna Lynn felt this was a waste of a valuable
resource that someone could use, so she collected these rolls
and took them to a local homeless shelter. She found her involvement
with this charity so rewarding that she became a volunteer coordinator,
and then took a salaried position as director of a city-wide volunteer
agency. Donna Lynn's work was so successful that she gained national
prominence and received an outstanding service award that brought
her to Washington D.C. where she was honored by President and
Mrs. Clinton, and met several past U.S. Presidents and their spouses
- all as a result of a single spontaneous thought about a roll
of toilet paper!
At this very moment the universe is trying to manifest
miracles through your visions, intuitions, and longings. Imagine
that your inklings are God's whispers to your heart. The same
God that gave you the idea, will give you the means and support
to see it through. The world is being transformed through people
like you, who love themselves enough to trust their inner guidance,
and relax enough to let the universe take care of the means.
Alan Cohen is the author of the bestselling The Dragon
Doesn't Live Here Anymore. To order Alan's new book I Had
It All The Time, or to request a free catalog of Alan's books,
tapes, and workshop schedule, write to Hay House, P.O. Box 5100,
Carlsbad, CA 92018, or call 1-800-462-3013.
For information about Alan's Mastery Training held in Hawaii and
focusing deeply with twenty-four participants, write to 430 Kukuna
Road, Haiku, Hawaii 96708 or phone 1-808-572-0001.
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