But my inner voice said that I must go to Florida to help my mother who was dealing with health issues .
My inner voice chimed in occasionally with insights . “ It ’ s easy to be ‘ spiritual ’ when you ’ re surrounded by likeminded thinkers and people on your wavelength . The socalled ‘ outside world ’ validates you . But can you be spiritual , and feel the way you like to feel , anywhere ?”
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I remember a few years back when I experienced a sudden ejection from a reality and self-image I ’ d been comfortably aligned with for quite some time . Events converged within a few weeks to lift me up like a leaf and blow me across country .
Actually , I felt like a piece of tangled rope that was shaken out or snapped briskly into line by some higher force . I needed to move — suddenly — after 30-some years in the spiritually active San Francisco Bay area . Where to go ? I thought about other energetically progressive cities like Boulder , Santa Fe , Austin , or Asheville .
But my inner voice said that I must go to Florida to help my mother who was dealing with health issues .
I knew that meant I would be living in an environment that didn ’ t match my frequency . And I had no sense of the overall purpose for this life change . I realized I was realigning with something higher , but Florida ?
As I settled in at my new home , I found myself living among warmhearted but conservative , fundamentalist people . When someone asked , “ So what do you do ?” I learned to avoid an awkward silence or a lecture about what the Bible thought about my views by saying , “ I write self-help books .”
I socialized with my mother ’ s eighty- to ninetyyear-old friends . Superficial conversation was easy , and they were all lively and fun , but I couldn ’ t mention what I really thought about or what my deep truths were .
“ What am I doing here ?” I thought . “ Is this the next phase in my spiritual growth and transformation ? Maybe this is the death knell of my career .”
My inner voice chimed in occasionally with insights . “ It ’ s easy to be ‘ spiritual ’ when you ’ re surrounded by likeminded thinkers and people on your wavelength . The socalled ‘ outside world ’ validates you . But can you be spiritual , and feel the way you like to feel , anywhere ?”
WISDOM & SELF-GROWTH
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