LAFOLOT

When you can LAUGH at the amazing spiritual lessons that are going on around you, no matter how absurd, joy comes to your heart!

I started out the day, peacefully and productively. I was so proud of my positive way in which I dealt with the latest ‘Loonie-fields’ condo board actions! As I shared, previously, about bringing my NOW ILLEGAL birdbath into my home as a water-reflection bowl for candles; I got to enjoy mini rainbow spots all over my dining room walls and ceiling as the sun passed through the votive candle holders yesterday!

So, there I was, sitting at my computer, looking out my PEACEFUL view of daffodils, birds, a beautiful gray stone wall surrounding a church cemetery when: da dun, da dun … da dun da dun… JUST WHEN I THOUGHT I WAS SAFE!

Ha Ha! Two men, one with a notepad, examing my plant hanger with silk flower basket outside my office window. (delete explitives here – ha ha) – NOW WHAT! I had my sliding glass doors open, so I went over and asked: IS THERE A PROBLEM? BECAUSE IF THERE’S A PROBLEM, TELL ME NOW – SO I CAN REMOVE THE OFFENDING PLANT HANGER AND POT SO AS NOT TO ADD TO THE 10 LETTERS THE BOARD HAS ALREADY SENT ME – AS WELL AS BEING TOLD I’LL BE FINED! The men said, oh no no no, we’re just walking around to check things.

I said, ‘Well, I read your letter and removed all the mums and daffodils per the note to remove all perennials from the grounds around the buildings. What else is it that is a problem so we can take care of it, so I can have some peace!’ They said, oh no, we don’t know anything about that. I said: ‘Well, I guess you haven’t read your Board letter.’ ha ha (How was I doing with my spiritual growth in this moment? hmm?) Gotta laugh at myself!

So, I realize I need to take a deep breath and calm down. I get myself focused, and get ready to go ‘out and about’ to pick up the paper to see my Book Signing AD, stop at the grocery store and then head out to lunch. I accomplish all this in a gradually more calming manner. I even got to try some of my uplifting, motivational talk with a friend’s daughter who recently lost her job, lost her boyfriend and relocated to the area. Isn’t it said, if you’re feeling down, reach out and help someone else? So, I felt good that I took the focus off myself, long enough, to help another soul.

Then, I thought to myself – I need a mini-vacation. If you got to read my CHUCKLING WITH THE DUCKS blog from last Fall; I decided to head over to Boiling Springs Children’s Lake (Central PA area of USA).

My intention was to sit in the same spot as before (I noticed the HA HA HA black marker letters were no longer there). My intention was to SIT, BE STILL, AND ALLOW NATURE TO CONTINUE ‘BEing’ around me. So, I find a nice spot on the gray stone step right down at the water level. The lake is fed by a natural water bubble, bubbling up from the earth. It was great. It was within a foot of me, where I sat!

I knew if I sat there long enough, even though it is a big lake, eventually the ducks, geese and white swans would slowly come by to visit. I knew all I had to do was relax and BE. I even got so relaxed as to remove my sneakers and socks (It was 74 degrees fahrenheit out!).

So, there I was, just BEing. Far from the madding crowd (ha ha). Ah, yes, *sigh – breathe in and out – far from thoughts of the Loonie-fields condo board ….. *sigh – ah yes – breathe in and out – just BEing – yessssss – birds twittering, flying, chirping…
feel the peace …

“HEY, HAVE YOU SEEN ANY SNAKES!” (laugh out loud) A red headed, freckled kid about 9 years old comes stomping towards me from the road. I look up and smile, telling him no, I hadn’t. I like kids and like talking and joking with them, so I didn’t mind.
The hilarious part is, (as I got up to help him look around for snakes and dip my feet in the cool refreshing water) he started to get more and more exaggerated with his LOVE of violence with animals! He let me know he had two days off school for the holiday.
He started to describe, in detail, the most deadly snakes of the world; how they bite and bite and bite and watch their prey slowly die! He went on and on and on! [WHAT HAPPENED TO MY PEACEFUL MOMENT?]

I asked where he had learned so much about snakes? He proudly revealed he had gone to the library! I told him that was great. He was frustrated that he had recently had to do a report on an animal for school. He said it had to be on the Polar Bear. I said, don’t you like Polar Bears? He said no, but all the GOOD animals were taken. He said he was 24th on the list to pick an animal and all the: SNAKES, LIONS, TIGERS – the good animals that kill stuff, were taken! I said, ‘Oh!’ (Was I talking to a future Charles Manson, here!) I said: Next time, if you want an interesting animal, try a rat or cockroach – they’ve been around since prehistoric times. They are amazing creatures. They adapt to all situations. HE WALKED AWAY! (laugh out loud!)

So, then – back to my PEACEFUL just BEing. Ah yess….. some ducks started to come towards me… a black bird… ah yess…. just BEing – then…. ‘JUMP DOWN TO THE GRAY ROCK NEAR THE WATER’S EDGE demanding: WHAT’S THIS!’ A woman coming behind the child, stating: THAT’S SEAWEED! (What seaweed was doing along the rock’s edge of a lake, I don’t know. ha ha The older woman was caught off-guard by the child’s question. She then said: ALGAE) Along comes another woman, who sits on the step directly behind me.

The first woman asks directly, as she sees my shoes and sneakers sitting on the wall to my left: FEET TIRED FROM WALKING? The little girl joins in: WHY DID YOU TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF!? (laugh out loud)

I said: ‘Because I’m a stressed out older woman who is working on relaxing.’ The older woman laughed. Then, an older gentleman (seemed to be a friend of the older woman) joined them. He came over to observe the little girl poking her stick at the: SHE ANNOUNCED – IT’S SEAWEED, GEORGE! IT’S SEAWEED! He said, Oh? (I had to laugh). Then, the little girl decided she needed to get up and down the steps by squeezing through the 2 inch space between the step I was sitting on and the wall. I was happy to accommodate. I thought it was funny. At one point, she was holding her stick with GOOPS AND GOOPS of dripping SEAWEED on it, about an inch from my head. The older woman asked her to not drip the GOOP ON THE LADY. (that was nice)

From listening to the foursome, it appeared the woman sitting behind me was the mother of the little girl. The mother had a back problem and had to take sitting breaks while walking around the lake. The older woman may have been a friend or grandparent.

I just had to laugh. I thought to myself while the little kid STORMED in with the SNAKES! question and the little girl who JUMPED freely off the wall down to the rock where I was sitting (along with the older woman talking to the girl’s mother about: MURDEROUS birds outside her window, knocking eggs out of a nest and killing the birds) – WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?

I laughed to myself, and asked the question: ‘What am I learning here?’ I thought, ‘I drove AWAY from the Condo People to get some emotional and mental relaxation and I start to get VISITED by SNAKES, AND KIDS AND PEOPLE, OH MY!

Well, Dorothy, you didn’t have to leave Kansas to learn the lesson! I knew, when I got there, if I JUST SAT – the birds, swans, ducks and geese would softly, quietly, eventually float or fly over to me. I then realized, if I JUST SAT – the little boy with his snakes, the little girl with her seaweed goo, the woman with the murderous bird stories, eventually CAME and WENT!

After I realized this, I noticed the buds had started to sprout on the cherry blossom tree to my left. I noticed green buds appearing on the tree to my right. I noticed the Beautiful White Swans had suddenly appeared within viewing distance of me!

All I had to do was BE. Just BE. Sometimes loud little boys with stories of KILLER snakes appeared; sometimes little girls with Seaweed Goop, and sometimes blackbirds, ducks, geese or swans… but THEY ALL came and went.

It appears I experienced all the lessons of the Bible, Budhist Mindfulness, Rumi, and other great sources of inspiration – just by BEing at Children’s Lake in Boiling Springs this afternoon. As I type this, a little bird is working its way through the grass outside my window…. it came and now it is going. My cat Kitty stopped by to visit and lounge across the keyboard so I would pet her furry belly while she relaxed… then, she left…

Thanks to ALL that visited me today!
Living life in amazement!
Live Life! Laugh Often!
LOOK OUT! IT’S A SNAKE COVERED IN SEAWEED GOO! …just kidding!
Highlighted Ha Ha Helen Szollosy of LAFOLOT
Living in the moment…
www.lafolot.com
[this blog post may also be seen at Vibrant Nation - Blog Circle name: Helenoflafolot ]