“I read a lot of things. You never know where the big idea might come from.” Meg Ryan, Working Girl
As a Therapeutic Storyteller, I’m always on the lookout for my next big idea. As many of you know, I’ve written five books, all intuitively channeled to me from my Team in Spirit of the Highest Light and Resonance. My books are a “collaboration” with Divine Source. Each book begins as an experience or an encounter in my daily life that provides new ways of thinking, which are to be brought forth and shared with others. Once the message is received, the book essentially writes itself. Divine Source holds the wisdom. I am simply a grateful messenger. Message received and delivered!
In order to make this symbiotic relationship work, I need to be open to whatever method the Universe chooses to present the message. It could be a conversation with someone, which was the inspiration behind my last book, The World is More Than We Know. Or, it could be a series of events that resulted in a new way of looking at something, which I wrote about in Will Work to Feed Dogs: Seven Steps to Identifying Meaningful Life-Work. It’s up to me to pay attention to the signs and synchronicities that Divine Source puts in front of me.
Since then, the biggest fallout from COVID for me has been the dearth of daily life encounters. I’ve lived largely in self-isolation since the beginning of the pandemic. My day job is entirely remote, I live in the country, I have little reason to drive into town. Which means that close encounters of any kind are pretty much non-existent these days.
No close encounters mean no stories to share. And no stories to share means no new books.
So where does a Therapeutic Storyteller go to look for signs and tune in for inspiration now?
Walmart, naturally.
“If you start to look around, you will start to see.” Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird.
In July, I was a guest on the podcast, “A View Beyond the Ordinary.” The podcast focuses on transformational stories of people who have taken the leap of faith into the unknown to pursue their calling, dream, or intuition. The goal is to provide a spark, wisdom, or inspiration to others to follow their heart’s calling.
I wasn’t feeling especially inspirational or transformative that morning, and I was more than a little concerned that the audience was not going to find me spark-worthy, wise, or even entertaining. But I was feeling hungry, so I made a quick run to Walmart.
Now I happen to hate the music that’s piped into stores. It’s usually too loud and just generally obnoxious. I’ve learned to block it out so I can hear myself think.
But THIS morning, when I went in, and before I had chance to put on my mental earplugs, I realized they were playing the theme song from the movie, Flashdance. And what was that movie about? A young woman who dreams of becoming a dancer, but gets tripped up along the way while she’s just trying to make a living. But the choices she makes – like becoming a steelworker whose boss happens to know someone on the board of directors at the dance school she wants to attend – get her an audition, which she never would have gotten based on her application alone.
Okay, I thought, message received and delivered! Granted, I’m not sure if I managed to sound inspirational on the podcast later that day. But I was grateful for the sign I was given.
Today, I’m at a crossroads. The means by which I’ve earned a living for the past 19 years is coming to an end in a few short weeks. And, as of this moment, I have no big idea what I’m going to do next – literally, no idea. I’m trying to stay optimistic and know that everything’s going to be okay in the long run. But I have my dark moments and my doubts. This is new territory for me. I’m a planner by profession, and not having a plan for what could be the next great leap of faith I’m about to take is unnerving to say the least.
But not so unnerving as to make me lose my appetite. So, once again, I head off to Walmart.
And once again, Divine Source is playing loud and clear. This time, they’re playing, “Don’t Stop” by Fleetwood Mac.
“If you wake up and don’t want to smile
If it takes just a little while
Open your eyes and look at the day
You’ll see things in a different way
Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow
Don’t stop, it’ll soon be here
It’ll be better than before
Yesterday’s gone, yesterday’s gone”
I just stood there in the dairy aisle and laughed. Have faith – everything IS going to be okay. Message received and delivered!
And maybe this experience isn’t book worthy. But it’s certainly blog worthy.
Which I wrote as soon as I got home. Here it is.
Want to know more about transforming limited thoughts and beliefs into limitless possibilities? Check out my Examine–Envision–Emerge Personal Transformation Book Series. Each book explores a particular aspect of thought healing. Find yours online at Amazon and Smashwords!