By Jeanne Fiorini
The third installment in our Ten True Things series is a collection of observations about How Things Work. These are patterns, concepts, and principles that have appeared repeatedly in Tarot readings and in the lives of people who have shared their stories.
These observations are like typical comments from Gracie Allen in that they are simple statements with deeper implications. And when we give thought to what mechanism might be in place to create such phenomena, it’s enough to make your head spin.
The first statement, True Thing #7, is one of my favorites. As far as I know, I coined the phrase: Coincidences Aren’t.
In October of 2002, a local store owner encouraged me to persevere with developing a line of Tarot-themed gift wrapping paper. The project idea was a good concept, but had been tabled for over a year because of difficulty obtaining usage rights for the Tarot card images. Later that same October, a woman from US Games emailed me saying that somehow my letter from 14 months prior had just that day reached her desk, and was I, “still interested in copyright information for a wrapping paper project?” The message was clear: Time to do wrapping paper.
How is it that when my mother was suddenly forced to euthanize her 8-year old dog, her oldest son was visiting and helped her make that painful trip to the veterinarian? How is it that a woman decides - after many years of questioning her career path - to become a documentary storyteller, and within 5 days two different people show up with useful information to help get things started? Why do certain people pop into your mind for no apparent reason, and then appear in the flesh within days? For that matter, how do Tarot cards “work”?
What miracle of interconnection, what unseen network, is at work in these not unusual events? Leaving that question to be answered at another time, let’s just say that it’s a wise person who recognizes that Coincidences Aren’t, and can use the proffered information to guide their actions.
Examples alone will be used to illustrate True Thing #8: What is true on the physical plane is also true on the psycho-spiritual plane.
- Just as a blade of grass has immeasurable power against the concrete through which it grows, so endowed is the human spirit.
- It is the nature of nature to grow and evolve, not in linear and expected ways, but in circular patterns of expanding “unfoldment.”
- The brighter the light, the darker the shadow.
- Existence moves in a cyclical/seasonal rhythm: Things will always change.
- All things strive to be brought into balance.
- If this 8th True Thing really is true, does that mean that Spirit/God/Source needs us as much as we need It?
Because we all are individuals filtering the world through our own viewfinder, we are by design subjective observers. We could argue whether any absolute and pure truth actually exists at all, given how difficult it is to take ourselves out of the equation as the observer.
If “what is real” and “what is true” are questions that revisit your mind, consider True Thing #9: The truth is in the overlap.
The Perennial Philosophy states, “As Above, So Below.” Christian religion teaches that, “God created man in his own image; male and female he created them” (Genesis I:27). In the 17th Century, John Donne wrote that we need, “… never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee.” We could get one hundred metaphysicians who’d all proclaim that, “We are One,” and that would bring more voices to the chorus. Now quantum science comes along and says that The Universe is a ceaseless flow of particles and waves of energy, containing more space than physical material.
These thoughts all converge onto the same point: “Everything is connected.” The statement, “We are One,” now begins to sound more like a concrete version of reality rather than simply the mantra of “those wacky New Agers.” It sounds true not just because science says so (they used to tell us that milk, meatloaf, and potatoes was a healthy supper), but because very different world views have reached a similar conclusion.
Isn’t it exciting to be living in an age when science begins to confirm long-held beliefs from metaphysics, world thought, and religion? If you’d like some help discerning “what is real” and “what is true” in any situation, learn to listen for what commonality might exist between the different voices in the choir.
When Bill Clinton was running for president in 1992, his political strategist posted a sign at campaign headquarters reminding him (and everyone working on the team) that, “It’s the economy, stupid.” (They won that election decisively.) As we reach the last True Thing, we can say, in the same manner, “It’s perception, stupid.” This is the 10th True Thing, and the most encompassing: It’s all about perception.
There is an episode of the 1980’s TV show “Thirty Something” that often comes into my mind. Two couples are having dinner together in a restaurant, there is an “incident,” and in the recounting of the event the next day, each person has a totally different version of what actually happened.
We’re back to the point about the problem with being the observer. Anais Nin said, “We don’t see the world as it is, but as we are.” If this is true, we’d better be darned careful about “who we are.” If we have fear and hatred in our hearts, that is what will be in our world; if we expect the worst to happen it probably will; if we scorn others and the situations in our life, then surely we will live to be scorned.
It’s scary - and hopeful at the same time - to think that in this way we do create our reality.
It is, then, our duty and responsibility to be conscious and intentional about how we perceive life and the world around us. It’s all a floating soup of possibilities waiting for us to solidify it and confirm meaning upon it!
What version of your life and of the world will you create today? It actually does make a difference how and what you think of reality. Studies on the effects of group prayer, for instance, show that positive effects occur from the implementation of that form of intentional positive thinking.
Maybe Gracie Allen had a good idea:
“First I read a book from the beginning, and then I read the ending, and then I start in the middle and read toward whatever end I like best.”
May we strive for our best possible ending.