Perception

Perception

I recently had an incident that caused me to ponder perception. A very talented jewelry maker had left some of her wares for consideration in my retail store.  As beautiful as they were, they were not a good fit for my offerings.  My intention was to call her and return them.  I am still getting organized from my Center’s move and the bracelets had made their way around my office, stored in various locations.  This artist came in unannounced wanting the bracelets back because someone was making her an offer.  In my head, I remembered they were in a bag waiting for me to call her to return.  I could NOT find them anywhere.  The stress ratcheted up with her standing here waiting. All kinds of stories began running through my head about disorganization, irresponsibility, etc.  All of those not-so-helpful monologues that are echoes of childhood.  Fortunately, she had errands to run so that we could carry on our search in private.  On a shelf, in my office, where I had looked 10 times before…my assistant, Sierra, saw them sitting in plain sight, bag-less. I personally had moved things around on that shelf looking for the bag of bracelets.  I was so focused on them being in a bag, I literally couldn’t see them.  I had probably intended or perhaps dreamt that I had put them in a bag.  My mouth remained open in amazement for far too long as the relief swept over me at having found them.

This is actually a thing, it turns out.  It is called motivated perception.  It usually shows up as seeing red cars everywhere once you decide to buy a red car.  Something like that. My experience was just reversed. Our brains unconsciously bend our perception of reality to meet our expectation & desires. 

I have known in my spiritual and healing practice that when we are co-creating with the universe, its best to get clear on what you want and then let go of the attachment to outcome.  This or something better.  The bracelet incident made me look a little further.  What if we have received things that we asked the universe for, but can’t see them because they don’t look the way we expect?  I remember when I got laid off from a job at a title company in the early ‘90’s.  I thought it was the worst thing that could happen to me.  I loved that job.  The company combined two branches and were able to let go the higher salaried overlaps.  I couldn’t imagine why the universe was punishing me.  Three months later I started my first business, KLE Unlimited Consulting.  The universe had responded to my soul’s request for expansion and growth.  I had hit the top of my growth at this company.  I was fat and sassy, coasting in a job I loved, but could do in my sleep. Time to move on, and so I was catapulted into the next growth trajectory.

What all of this means to me, since the universe has a habit of bringing up opportunities to learn the next, deeper level, is that what gifts are showing up for me, or you, in a form that we can’t perceive?  According to many teachers all of the things that show up in our life are for our growth.  Maybe we just need to shift our perception to realize that we indeed are calling in all of the events in our life.  How empowering.