The Tree That Was Upside Down

“Flowers always sprout from seeds protected by the darkness of the earth.” ~ Author Unknown


Yesterday, a friend sent me a beautiful picture via e-mail. It depicted a person standing by a very large tree, under the moonlight; the tree was mirrored on a body of water in front of it. Although I was instantly stunned by the breathtaking beauty of the photo, something about it caught my eye in particular – the top of the tree was the lowest point of the mirrored image.

For decades now, it has been speculated that our outside world is but a mirrored reflection of our inner world, and that the real self lives beyond our consciousness and observes our daily experiences to learn from them. If that’s indeed how things work, and we compare the picture of the two trees to our dual selves – inner and outer – then the tree and the body of water would be equal to our inner reality, and the mirrored reflection would represent what we see and manifest in the outside world. In this case, what we consider the “lowest” part of the reflected image is in fact the highest part of the real tree.

When we apply the same analogy to life occurrences, it is easy to see how the lowest and darkest moments in our lives can often be the highest points our spirit can reach. Our soul is not affected by greed, fear, pride or doubt, and it evolves whenever we learn a lesson in humility, compassion, forgiveness, or unconditional love even if we struggle through the process of learning.

When life doesn’t indulge our illusion of control, we can choose to take one of two possible paths – we either understand the meaning of what’s truly important, or we bury ourselves even deeper into a self-dug, ego-induced grave. Either way - and whether we realize the value of our experience or not - our soul learns from the choices we make. Thus, the lowest point in our lives IS the highest point our spirit can achieve, and our darkest moments are often a shortcut to see the light.

Just as flowers couldn’t sprout if left on the surface of the earth to dry in the sun, our spiritual awareness would not prosper if we were never left in the dark.

Are You a Fire Starter or a Fire Keeper?

If someone could peer at the traffic in my mind when I first awaken, they would be amazed there aren’t any accidents. It’s like ideas start getting in queue when I first fall asleep and patiently wait in line until the door of my consciousness opens again. The moment my eyes open, the torrential rush of thoughts begins, and if it was up to me, I’d move cities and mountains just in that first hour. Thankfully for me, one of the most important people I work with – Dena, my soul sister, consulting editor and PR person - is driven by a symbiotic type of energy and never sleeps.

My husband is quite the opposite. Although he rises early because of work related reasons, he would happily sleep in if he could, and it takes him a little while to really warm up to the day ahead. Once he is completely awake, he gets into an even and methodical set of routines which allow him to keep everything in balance. He gladly takes the ball and guards it until he can get it safely to the other side of the field; if anyone gets in his way before he has completed his task they do so at their own risk.

We have always agreed that I am a fire starter, and he’s a fire keeper – entirely different types of fuel propel us forward, but both are equally important in the final equation. I come up with a lot of the initial ideas, and he provides the means to manifest them into reality and keep them going. I have always been quite lucky to be surrounded by very capable fire keepers, who are able to take the flame and tend to its growth and existence, especially when my focus has already sped toward the next goal.

Most of us fall into one of the two categories, and struggle to keep up with the other side of things. In my case, for example, I love to write, but I’d rather shoot my own feet than edit my own writing. I see the story in my head like a film playing on a screen, and I transfer the images on paper in a very short time, but I couldn’t achieve the same results without Dena’s irreplaceable skills of dissecting my first draft and turning it into a story other people can also watch in their minds. Fact is that it is not important to fit both shoes, as long as we can let go of control and allow others to step in and pick up where we left off.

Feeling guilty for not being able to do both hinders our creativity in both directions. Once we understand what our strength is, there is no need to waste time or energy on our weaknesses. If we focus our attention on what we do best, and allow others to shine through the light of their own abilities, the fusion of skills can only lead to mutual success.

What about you? Are you a fire starter or a fire keeper?

From my son Michael's pen..."An Ocean Fantasy"

“An Ocean Fantasy” – by Michael Carrington-Smith


My son wrote this piece yesterday and it was so cute I just had to share...:-)


It was a perfect day to take a walk. The orange of the sky was only interrupted by fluffy puffs of clouds which made me think of cotton candy. The sun was very warm, and its heat defied the cool breeze blowing in from the ocean, even if it was only six o’clock in the morning. I stepped on the sand from the wooden boardwalk, and loved the feeling of the sand under my feet. I looked over and saw waves erupting on the shore, white foam building on their crests as they approached the shallow side.

I was absorbed in my thoughts as I walked, and didn’t see a stick on my path. My foot tripped on the stick and I fell over, suddenly finding myself face to face with a beautiful blue rock which reminded me of an aquamarine my grandfather once showed me. I picked it up and placed it in my shirt pocket, happy to have found something I could claim as a small treasure from my outing. While I fantasized about giving the rock to my friend Paul and thought of a rich story to go with its finding, I didn’t see a bigger wave coming in and splashing on shore. The undercurrent made me lose my balance and I fell into the surf. Suddenly, I couldn’t feel sand under my feet any more, and I was quickly whisked away into deeper water.

All I could see around me was water, and my fear grew with each long second that went by. The sound of the waves was louder than I heard while walking on the shore, and the strong smell of salt assaulted my nose and throat. I was trapped! My mind started going in a million directions and suddenly I started thinking of sharks. What if one was nearby, looking for an easy meal? I felt something tugging at my foot and my heart almost stopped. My whole body was paralyzed from fear, and I had no strength to fight back. The further down I went, the darker the water became, and suddenly I felt light-headed. Everything around me was blurred and I couldn’t think straight any more. I knew I was getting ready to pass out.

When I woke up, I was still in the middle of the ocean, and I was surprised that I could breathe under water. I hung on to a fishing net caught on an old wooden sign. The only word written on the sign was “Atlantis”. I couldn’t believe it! The mythical Atlantis? How had I gotten there? I looked around and saw something amazing…Ferris Wheels glittered in the distance and candy of all kinds was laid out on marine plants. I stumbled on something and saw it was a treasure chest. I jumped up with excitement and started thinking of a way to take it back to shore. On my right, I noticed an old piece of wood, about six feet by four, and I used it to lift the chest and carry it to shore. When we finally got closer and I felt sand under my feet, I stood up quickly, and dragged the heavy chest on land.

I kicked the chest repeatedly to open it, but it wasn’t until I pried the lock open with a crow bar I found in a boat nearby that it finally gave in. My heart was beating a million beats a minute, and curiosity was making me almost light-headed. As the mysterious content came to light, the sun reflected on a display of gold coins and jewels that almost took my breath away. While I dug my hands in the treasure, I felt something moving underneath, and suddenly a marine elf popped its green-blue head out and looked at me angrily. I asked him who he was and what I could do to make him happy, and he replied that his mission was to keep the treasure of Atlantis safe. Now, everyone would know Atlantis was real. I promised I would hide the treasure and helped the elf jump back into the surf. I dug a very deep hole and hid the coins in it. I smiled while I filled the hole with sand and shells. Nobody would ever again lay eyes on it.

Something touched my face and made me jolt. A seagull’s feather was tickling my nose and woke me up. I looked around confused and saw the blue rock in front of my nose. I guess that I had passed out when I fell after tripping on the stick. I relaxed there, looking at the stone, while waves splashed on the shore a few feet away.