Hope
Yeah, I thought about blogging about this, and thought about blogging about that.
And then, something happens, that changes my life.
And I just have to roll with it.
This morning I went to visit a one on one client.
After our session she says, “Would you want to see the baby chicks?”
Of course, I want to see the baby chicks! Who doesn’t like baby animals?!?
Well, if you don’t, we can’t be friends.
So we went out to the chicken coop. Baby chickens are so cute.
And there’s a little one belly up, paralyzed, labored breathing, eyes still shut. My client was so sad. He came out of that shell that way. She felt horrible that I saw it.
It immediately reminded me of a rescue dog that had the same thing going on. I cannot remember what the disorder was, I just remember watching the video on You Tube a few years back. And the recovery process. I did attempt to find it. I did not. I’ve studied neuroscience for hours and hours, and the years and years of rehabilitation experience I’ve had, just came rushing to me. Something so much greater than myself came to me, and put me to work.
I picked up that chick immediately. Held it, loved it. Started doing physical therapy on it, and rehab.
I first put it on it’s feet. And then, supported it. Then, lifted it’s weight a little bit so it was standing. Let’s call them, modified squats. I moved his wings, his legs, pet him. Put his beak in water. Each movement, each pattern, the chick was improving. He began to move his neck upward while his beak was in the water. He began to open one of his eyes, chirping, putting more and more weight on his feet.
My client decided to bring the chick inside. Set up a heat lamp. We put water with the chicken feed, in the hopes it would become mush.
I immediately thought of this way to keep his body stable, in the normal ‘chick’ way. Yes, it’s a little ironic, an egg carton. Something that would hold his body, cradle him, in the way that I was holding him, so that his body could start gaining strength. His head was flopping down, so we put a small pillow in one of the other egg compartments. Again, mimicking movements and body patterns of a normal chick.
All in all I spent about 1.5 hours with Hope.
As I was driving away, I had already gotten a text that he had opened both his eyes.
This whole experience has had a profound effect on me.
What I saw was a living, breathing, life. Suffering.
We all suffer.
And we are surrounded by people who are suffering, or have suffered.
Each person, each life, has meaning.
I got to thinking about how many people we share the planet with. And so many of us hustle and bustle, and don’t really take the time to look around.
Every life is sacred. Even in the face of death.
When I’m driving, or walking and I see a homeless person, a real homeless person; I always feel a gentleness, a kindness, in their soul. I always make eye contact with them and smile, and give a blessing. There is something so pristine, and sacred to me in their life. A simplicity. And although they are homeless, they seem to be content in where they are.
Hope.
Hope was suffering. Hope seemed to be a life so sacred, so pristine and pure.
Every life, every soul, deserves compassion.
To feel love.
To feel the warmth.
All I could do was open my heart and do everything I could so this one soul, this one life, could feel the joy of being loved.
To be so close to death, and feel love.
To feel that someone cares enough to do everything they can in their power, to make sure they feel the love and the compassion that everyone deserves.
As I was driving away, not knowing if Hope would make it. I knew that all would be OK because of the love that was given. The love that he felt. That someone can give so much for another living being as to feel warmth, and give warmth, and a way so pure, so full of love.
I knew, and know now, that if Hope does not make it, at least the love he had for the time that he had, made it all worth it.
We are surrounded by people everyday that need this love, this reassurance. To feel accepted no matter the circumstances of life.
These people may be strangers, they may be our family, and loved ones, even more simply, it may be us.
We have no way of knowing.
All we can do is greet each person in our lives as an extension of ourselves. Our Love. Greet each person with the unconditional Love of the Power of the Universe.
There are no boundaries.
We limit ourselves by the boundaries we place upon ourselves. The boundaries we put in place, our judgments on other living creatures, that they are not worthy. That certain people don’t deserve our attention, or the unconditional love, that is ours to give.
We cannot, and should not walk away. We should embrace the experience that we are given. We should throw ourselves into our relationships like nothing else matters. We should greet each person like they’re our best friend.
To love, to give love, so wholly, and so innocently is a gift. It’s a gift to the giver, and the the recipient.
Having the compassion to recognize that each life is as sacred as our own. That is one of the most amazing gifts we are given.
We have a choice on how we greet people.
Do we look down on them?
Do we think we are better than them?
Do we feel we are more deserving than them?
Do we choose to look away?
Do we choose to not acknowledge them? To not acknowledge that we are from the same Source?
No one is better than us. We are better than no one.
The Truth is, we are all the same. We are just different.
Karma. Good Karma in the bank. Is better than money in the bank. Although, I prefer both.
Working hard, and working hard on our compassion, gives us the luxury of both.
So how can we change the life of one living soul?
Hope is so sweet.
We all have it.
With a little Love and Compassion we can change the life of one person, or everyone, we come in contact with.
With a little Hope we can stand on our own.
Hope is an amazing creature. Hope has felt the love so deep of another living being. We were able to give a part of ourselves. A gift so simple. A little time, and a little energy, and a lot of love.
12 Hours ago, our hope enabled this loving, living creature, to have hope.
An amazing comeback. An amazing transformation of Love.
We have a gift.
A gift we should share with the world. With each other.
So simple to share an experience, to treat another living creature as an equal.
To give each person the love and respect they deserve.
To find the compassion in ourselves, with ourselves, that we may extend outwards to truly make a difference in another’s life.
Hope.
May we never give up on each other,
Or ourselves.
Hope.
Sometimes,
that’s all it takes.
Peace, Love, and Hope.
Coach Zoe.