Sitting in Neutral

What little child hasn't dreamed of the passage of his or her life. She dreams of the famous actress or singer that she will be. He dreams of being a great firefighter, a police officer, a sports hero or maybe just walking the in the shoes of his father. Maybe both dream of getting married and having their own family. Their dreams may tend toward grandiosity. But we all know that those childhood dreams usually escape our grasp. Somewhere along the way our lives unfold along paths we never could have defined--sometimes happily and sometimes not so much. Nevertheless, we make decisions about our paths and as we live from places of power we leave certain ways of being behind.

In the stages of force and the powerful stage of courage that we have studied thus far there remains a tendency to desire to control life. We know where we are going and we know what life should hand us. We believe that picture will come. Those bent on control are often devastated when they can't attain what they intended. But in the stage that succeeds courage a person comes to learn that phrase that is all too regular around my house. (Probably because I need to hear it more than anyone). "It is as it should be."

It is as it should be! In other words, I can't control what other people say, what other people do or how they choose to live their lives. I can barely control myself! It is a recognition that life flows and when we seek to stand in the way of the flow we are the only ones who create anguish for ourselves.

This new level of power is known as neutrality. This is the level when one becomes aware of his or her own power. It is the place where inner confidence begins to truly bloom and one realizes that in this life we have to go with the flow. This is the level of safety where people are willing to release emotionality and simply learn to be.

About a month and a half ago, I was at Wrightsville Beach with my family. Two men came and began setting up a contraption that I had never seen before (apparently my life is more sheltered than I knew!) It was a kite board and when they had everything ready, the rider strapped himself in with all of the appropriate cords, made is way into the ocean and the wind lifted him up. He blew all the way down the island and back again over the hours that we peered out there and I couldn't help but be mesmerized by the process.

What I witnessed in those moments was a lesson that I must learn and relearn it seems! Here was a man that was willing to go where the winds of nature would blow him. He had his vision and some level of direction that he offered to the process but the winds were what carried him. This is what sitting in neutral is all about. When we live at this level of neutrality, we let life carry us toward our goals and sometimes they don't pan out like we thought but allowing life to take us where it will often brings far more amazing experiences than we could have conceived of our own volition!