ONCE UPON A DREAM; Life Patterns & Fortune

 

"Fortune favours the brave" or so the saying goes; yet when life takes a sudden downturn it can be tough to find the courage to face up to the reversal of fortune.  Roman deity Fortuna, pictured above, is one of my favourite goddesses.  It is she who turns the Wheel of Fortune and she is often depicted wearing a blindfold, to illustrate that she is impartial.   She carries a cornucopia full of gold coins that she scatters at will, representing earthly abundance.  

Fortuna has smiled on my life many times, but that doesn't mean that luck is always on my side.  I've had my share of misfortune too. Everyone has.  Over the years though, I have noticed the patterns of fortune at play in my life.  I have written about this before, in a post about the Wheel of Fortune  and the seven year cycle.  Life rarely moves from the pinnacle of success to the doldrums in one fell swoop, and there is usually a steady increase or decline, with warning signs along the way.  Loss is a sign that it is time to move on, so if things are being systematically stripped away from you, it means that your life is undergoing a cosmic makeover.  It can be tough to live through, but stick with it, because something has to replace that which has been taken away.  Trust that all will be well.

Since writing that post last spring, my own wheel of fortune has begun to shift a little, beginning a new assent, just as I expected it would.  This has been apparent in the little things that happen unexpectedly - a happy holiday, a windfall, a chance encounter.  Small gifts of fortune from a benevolent universe, hinting that the good times are beginning again and I am looking forward to them.  

Life has also been less of a struggle and a lot less stressful since I finished college and was finally free to leave the tutor behind, which again is an indication that the bliss cycle is back in charge!  In addition, working at Cruse Bereavement Care helped me to keep things in perspective.  Death is the worst aspect of life, and helping people to come to terms with it was one of the most rewarding things I have ever done.  It was definitely a decent deposit in my good karma bank account and now good things are coming to me in turn.  

I have also noticed another pattern running through my life. Things always seem to happen to me mid-decade.  Big things - like 'starting a new chapter in life'  things.  They always happen to me around the middle of the decade.  I left school at 16, like most do, and went to work in an equestrian centre which had been my childhood dream.  Then I signed my first book contract under commission at the age of 25.  I signed my Spirit&Destiny columnist contract at the age of 33.   I completed counsellor training this year at the age of 44.  

This is a pattern at work in my life.  The mid-section of each decade - so my mid-20's, 30's and 40's - have been quite pivotal times for me, always leading to something big, long-term and fairly lucrative.  It makes me excited for the rest of my 40's and  I can't wait to see what great gift Fortuna will bring to me next, as clearly, taking my personal history with her into account, something Big is just around the corner and a new phase of my life is soon to begin. 

I feel a sense of wonder at Fortuna's blessings - she has brought so many opportunities my way over the years and she has smiled on my writing career and my new psychotherapy goals. I feel a deep sense of gratitude.  So far in my life, good things have always come to me and I have always been given the opportunity to make my dreams my reality.  I believe this is because my goals always involve helping others, whether that be through my writing as a self-help and spiritual author, or as a counsellor helping clients with their troubles.  My goals are never just about me - they are about using my gifts to help other people and I believe that is the key to success.  Help others and the gods will smile on you; help others and opportunities will come to you; help others and all will be well.

I spent my 20's writing spiritual books; I spent my 30's writing columns; I spent the first half of my 40's training in psychotherapy. I wonder what the second half of my 40's will bring to me; what new aspect of my writing will be revealed; what new chapter of my life is about to unfold? I know I plan to keep weaving together my writing and psychotherapy, as editors seem to be on board with this change.  But as I have already realised most of my life goals, I am not really sure what else I want to do next.  I still have goals, but I am also more open to new avenues and adventures than I have ever been before.  I am eager to see where Fortuna takes me next, and I have faith that, as Thumbelina says

 "Wondrous things are sure to happen!" 

ONCE UPON A DREAM; Flying Lessons Pt 1

Taylor Swift flying high with a hot pilot

Last year my spirit of adventure was kicked off by my holiday to Oban and my return to ice skating.  Since then it has been rather derailed by having to focus on my clinical hours and final placement report, but now that is all done, my inner adventuress is tugging at my mind once more. 

You might recall I was considering learning how to fly and once again my mind is turning in that direction.  So today I have contacted the flying school to see if I can pre-book a session with them.  I don't know how busy they are, but I do know that it is something I would like to do this autumn.

As I don't plan on going to the Highlands this year, I want to have other fun stuff to look forward to.  That is why I bought myself a ticket to see Ant Middleton. I can't wait for that and I am so much looking forward to hearing him speak.  But I also want to do something a bit more adventurous myself.  It's one thing listening to an adventurer speak, it's quite another to go on an adventure yourself, and that's what I really want to do.  I see Ant as my warm up act, to get me in the mood and make me feel like I can do whatever I set my mind to.

So if all goes to plan, I have decided that I am going to book a taster flying lesson for on my birthday this November and I'm hoping to have it all booked in and paid for by the end of next week - that way I can't chicken out! I know I will be scared, but that is half the fun of it and I can't think of a more adventurous way to spend my birthday.  Mid-November might not be the best time for a first flying lesson, but it will be a birthday I never forget! 

I feel as if I have waited long enough.  It is time to take matters into my own hands, to take control of the dream and put some solid plans into place.  So now I have six months to psyche myself up for it and talk myself into it, as a reality, rather than a pipe-dream. It's time to cross this thing off my bucket list and hope that I don't kick the bucket in the process! Because life's a witch, and then you fly!

xxx

MUSICAL DOLL; Where You Are

Every night while you are dreaming

I'm here to guard you from afar

And any time I feel alone

I close my eyes and dream of where you are...

Wrap me in your wings and take me where you are

xxx

BOOK NOOK; Make Your Bed by Admiral William McRaven

Admiral McRaven gives me butterflies! 

I was introduced to his work a few months ago when I was having my lunch break in the Cruse Bereavement Care office and our administrator, Mary, handed me her phone saying "Here Marie, watch this, you'll love it. It's right up your street."  

Glancing down at the phone I was momentarily dazzled by a man in a pristine white military uniform, complete with shiny gold buttons and a chest full of Commendations. 

It's fair to say that the Admiral had my full attention in the blink of an eye.  I was reminded of Richard Gere in An Officer And A Gentleman- which is never a bad thing.  I clicked on the You Tube Play Button and fell into a mesmerised silence. Listening to the Admiral's speech, given in his lovely deep voice, the world did not exist...and that's when he first gave me butterflies.

It's been a while since a man gave me butterflies. The good butterflies.  The kind that soar in beautiful formation through your entire being, lifting your spirits on stained glass wings until you feel that you can achieve anything.  Like I said, the Admiral gave me some serious butterflies!

As I carried on with my day counselling bereaved clients, his speech played over in the back of my mind.  So much so that I found the video on You Tube when I got home and watched it again. I'll link it at the end of this post so you can watch it too.  It's so simple, but so powerful and empowering. 

So when I discovered that he had written a book called Make Your Bed, based on his speech and his experience as a US Navy Seal, I knew I had to get it. I was intrigued and I wanted to read what he had to say.  The book arrived today and I have spent a happy afternoon between the covers with the Admiral, because, why would I not? 

And he gave me butterflies again...though this time they weren't so good.  This time they were the stomach churning, anxiety driven moths of fear, because he was writing about the time he was terribly injured in a parachute jump that went very wrong.  That chapter made for a painful reading experience.  But the rest of the book is great.  He talks about his time in Iraq and Afghanistan; what Saddam Hussein was really like in the days following his capture; how he made it through his Seal training. Most of all he describes how his military training can be applied to everyday life, by everyday people. 

I was especially moved when reading his chapter on Giving People Hope.  Although he was talking about losses within the military, it really struck a chord in me because that is essentially what we do at Cruse as counsellors.  We offer people hope in their hour of need.  We hold on to hope for them, until they are strong enough to carry it for themselves once more. We are a ray of light in their darkness.  It's a tough job.  It can be very difficult knowing what to say to someone who is grieving and all the training in the world doesn't make it any easier.  You have to honour their grief and respect that their world has changed forever, and you will never make it all better for them, no matter what you say. But empathy goes a long way towards healing.  Empathy is a good beginning. 

Make Your Bed is a little book.  It will fit neatly into your handbag or kit-bag so you can keep it with you as a mobile mentor for when you're having a particularly bad day. It's the kind of book you can dip into when you feel thwarted, or you want to quit, or you feel frightened.  It will make you see that you are strong, powerful, resilient and courageous.  Mostly it will offer up a military-strength pep-talk whenever you need it, so if you're fresh out of soldiers, you could do worse than spend the Prosecco money on this book instead.  And if you don't want the book, here is the Admiral's fabulous speech on You Tube..get ready for the butterflies!

MUSICAL DOLL; Let Me Be Your Wings

"Oh, I wish I had wings!"

XXX