A New Year's Wish

"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end." (Seneca)

One day a rebellion began to brew in Nature. As is often the case, the rebellion began in something very small, and it began with the word "No".

The tiny tadpole, who in seeing its reflection in the pond, had decided that it had no interest in becoming a frog.  "It's too hard of work to learn how to hop.  Croaking is just silly.  And besides, green is SO not my color!"  And so the tadpole declared it was just going to stay a tadpole, small and shiny.

And soon enough, other creatures, big and small, began to join the tadpole, each uttering a similar complaint.

The leaves announced that they were refusing to fall anymore.  "It's humiliating becoming hummus!", they cried.  "We're staying stuck to our branches from now on!".

And the roses rushed to support the leaves and declared a boycott on blooming.  "We're tired of being picked and plucked and sniffed and snuffed!.  We're just staying tight in our buds until further notice!", they said, making a stink.

The grass also presented its grievance against grazing and demanded that the deer "Leave our leaves alone!"

The filberts told the gray squirrels to go find something else to stash, and the squirrels angrily chattered back, "You're nuts!"

The fish refused to swim upstream anymore.  "Who wants to be batted and bitten by burly brown bears? We'd rather hide than hatch!", the salmon sneered and the guppies griped.

The snow frostily declared a freeze on melting.  The logs snapped, "It's unkind to kindle!" and said they were ignoring ignition until further notice.

Even the seasons joined in.  Winter wouldn't wane.  Autumn announced "It Ought Not".  Spring grumbled about growing one more time.  And Summer said it would rather take a break.

And they all marched off, behind the tadpole, promising to return and change, but only when they were good and ready.

What a crazy, impossible world it would be if this kind of "rebellion" was really possible!  If Life could simply say "I don't like change.  I'm not going to change until I'm good and ready"!

Funny thing is that's what we do in Life so often.  We get stuck in ruts.  And then we find reasons to stay stuck, and explanations why it's too hard to get unstuck.  But in all our stewing and stalling while snared in our "stuck-ness", we forget the greatest power we have.

The power to start over.  Anytime, anywhere that we wish to.

Today in class a student shared the following encouraging reminder from Guy from his book Freedom From the Ties that Bind.

The greatest power you possess for succeeding in life is your understanding that life gives you a fresh start any moment you choose to start fresh. Nothing that stood in your way even a heartbeat before stands there now in the same way. It's all new, even if you can't as yet see it that way. (Guy Finley)


I couldn't think of a better thought, a more precious "Pearl" to begin the New Year with:  the wish to remember this power, born out of a simple choice I can make as often as I wish.  


To start over.

"There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth:  not going all the way, and not starting." (Buddha)


Happy New Year in 2012...let the journey begin!