Recently I was in a pretty negative situation which isn’t typical for me. I avoid negative situations and people like the plague but without warning I found myself involved. It was like playing tennis with a piece of poop. Someone lobbed a big piece of poop at me and I served it right back. That is typically what happens…. when you sling a bunch of crap at someone they will most likely sling it right back. It’s not a fun process and both parties usually end up covered in it and feeling like it. Yuck.
Well, I was in the process of returning the turd to it’s rightful owner, and a thought appeared reminding me of how quickly karma goes to work whenever I dabble in the negative. I considered the thought, revisited the situation, and my ego reminded me of all the offenses by the poop thrower. My ego is like a slick trial attorney and could rival the spirit of Johnny Cochran. It presented a solid case as to why I was justified in returning the turd, and I had to agree.
Maybe 5-10 minutes after the trial concluded and the verdict was rendered, I was driving a few miles from my home on an errand I had done dozens of times. I can’t count how many times I have exited the freeway where I did, crossed traffic and made a left at the light. Well this time was different. After turning left, a motorcycle cop appeared behind me with his lights blazing and telling me to pull over. The weird thing is… it didn’t phase me? In the past when I have been pulled over, instantly my heart starts racing and I’m full of fear and worry, but this time I was as calm as can be. I had no clue what I did wrong, but I wasn’t upset. The officer approached my car, and was as nice as can be. He told me that I crossed over a double yellow as I was getting into the turn lane. I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about but I didn’t argue. I just told him that I was unaware of my offense and apologized. I said I would go back and look to see what I had done wrong and would certainly not do it again. He told me that he wrote me up for the least expensive infraction he could, in regards to crossing a double yellow, and that I could go to court to contest the citation as well. I accepted the ticket, thanked him and that was that. I went on to run my errand and was not the slightest bit upset. It didn’t feel like a punishment. In a super weird way, it felt like a gift??
When I got home, I had some cardboard cutouts to do for Brian so I went to work in the garage and decided to listen to Oprah’s Super Soul podcast. There wasn’t one specific thing that was said that triggered an “Aha moment” but just listening to the soulful conversation took me within. My mind began to review the citation and a thought appeared questioning if karma showed up early in anticipation of my “return”. Yikes! If I got a ticket before I even threw the poop back, what could happen once it was actually thrown? I knew it was time for a retrial and instead of taking it to my ego to make the decision, I knew I had to take it to my heart. So I slept on it. The next morning I woke up early and asked my heart what to do. It asked me, “What do you want Shelly?” I replied, “Peace“. “Ok” I heard, “Then you have your answer“. And I did. I knew that sending the poop back would only cause more poop to come my way and that was the exact opposite of what I wanted. I wanted peace so instead I decided to send love. When I made that decision, and when I did in fact send the love, I found the peace I was looking for and it felt so much better than the “pay back” I had planned.
I knew then that the ticket was a gift! It stopped me from making a mistake that would have cause me unnecessary suffering. That is why I know the whole exchange was so peaceful and kind. It wasn’t a punishment, it was protection and knowing that makes me feel so safe and loved. So I say once more… I got a ticket and I LOVE IT!!
