When I replaced the wood-burning stove in my house, I had to replace the chimney, too.
The new chimney was a stainless steel tube that fit inside the old, brick chimney.
I hired a workman to do the job, and I agreed to help.
Every fall is a lesson
"Throw me the pliers,' he shouted down.
"Let me bring them up," I suggested. He was standing on the narrow top of the old brick chimney, almost thirty feet above the ground. If he tried to reach too far and lost his balance, he would fall. Below him was a rocky path.
"Throw them up," he shouted again, as though reading my mind. "I'm an Iroquois indian. We build skyscrapers. I'm not going to reach too far."
I held my breath and tossed. The pliers sailed upward in a graceful arc toward him. His legs didn't move. His waist didn't move. His chest, shoulders, and head didn't move, either. Only his left arm moved. My throw was good, and his hand closed around the pliers.
"Nice toss!" he grinned.
If the pliers had been farther than he could have reached, I knew that he would have let them fall. Even if they had brushed the tips of his fingers, I knew that he would have let them fall.
Tool after tool sailed up—screwdrivers, a drill bit, and another pair of pliers.
Some of them fell. Others didn't. It depended upon how well I could throw, not on how far he could reach. He reached as far as he could, but no further. My job was to get the tool within his range. When I did, he caught it. When I didn't, it fell.
How far do you reach for security and appreciation? How often do you experience the pain of disappointment, the agony of not getting what you very much want, or of getting what you very much do not want?
Every expectation is a reach too far. Every fall is a lesson. Eventually, you will learn the art of letting whatever is beyond your reach remain there, no matter how appealing or important it appears. Even if it is something you desperately need.
Even if it is something you long for. Even if it is something you think you cannot live without.
When that happens, you will stand in your center, no matter what comes sailing toward you, or how close or how far away it is.
From: http://www.zukav.com
