One of the concepts that I've been working with a lot in my own spiritual growth is the need to let go of expectations. Awhile back, I let go of results. Why is letting go of expectations so important? Since we manifest our own reality, letting go of expectation opens up the floodgates of potential, removing many of the self-imposed limitations that we have set in place. An old Chinese parable was instrumental in doing so...
There once was an old farmer who lived alone except for the company of a single son. The farmer and his son were not poor, nor were they rich. They worked the land, lived simply, and owned a single horse which they relied upon to pull their plow as they tilled the fields.
One day when the son was mending the corral, their horse jumped over the gap of the fence and galloped into the surrounding mountains.
"What bad luck!" the farmer's son exclaimed.
"Good luck? Back luck? Who's to say?" the farmer replied.
The very next day, the horse returned to the farm, leading a herd of wild horses behind it. The farmer's son had just finished mending the corral and as the herd of horses went directly into the enclosure, he quickly closed the gate behind them.
"What good luck!" the farmer's son exclaimed. "Now we can sell the extra horses and be rich!"
"Good luck? Back luck? Who's to say?" the farmer replied.
Early the next morning, the farmer's son went out to the corral to begin the process of breaking the wild horses. He had no sooner started then one of the horses bucked him off and the farmer's son fell awkwardly, breaking his arm.
"What bad luck!" the farmer's son exclaimed. "I can't believe I broke my arm!"
"Good luck? Back luck? Who's to say?" the farmer replied.
The next day one of the Emperor's men came through the village, recruiting able-bodied men to fight in a distance war. They would be shock troops used to soften up the opposing army and would almost certainly die. Because of his broken arm, the farmer's son was physically unfit for duty and had to remain home.
"Good luck? Back luck? Who's to say?"
While I've been fairly successful letting go of expectations of the outcome of an event, I've been learning to let go of the process that brings me to the outcome. It's getting easier, but I'm not quite there.
In that vein, the next lesson in The First Cycle won't post until Thursday. A number of responsibilities came up that ate into my writing time and I've only covered two of the four core concepts to consider when working with tools. While I could probably finish it up late tonight, I wouldn't have the opportunity to edit the material before sending it out. Delaying publication until Thursday not only gives me time to finish the lesson, but will allow me to present you with a higher quality piece.
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