Several months ago a wonderful former Reiki Master student of mine contacted me and told me an interesting story.  He was traveling home from work one night on a two lane highway when he noticed a man behind him tailgating his car.  The man was acting very impatient and  honking his horn.  The next thing he knew the driver was passing him illegally on the left as he gave him the third finger salute.  My former student's immediate reaction was annoyance and he was tempted to salute back - at least with his thoughts.  Then he stopped, caught himself and found himself saying "You A Reiki Master Act Like One."  So his second thought was the action he choose.  He smiled and sent healing to the man.  After that day, every time he gets upset with someone he tries to remind himself of this incident and has coined a acronym "Yarmalo".  You're A Reiki Master Act Like One.  Or for many of us it would be "Yarpalo".  You're A Reiki Practitioner Act Like One."

I loved this story and got his permission to share it in my newsletter.  Many of you have heard my "Chief Joseph and the New York Executive Story."  The main message of it is that who we think are our tormentors in our lives are our best teachers.  If we send them love or well wishes we create healing.  Sometimes it even changes the relationship.  But at least we heal and help the planet with sending healing vibrations to our earth.

Okay, so what does this have to do with the title of this Newsletter this month?

I think that if we are on the path we can all do fine with this type of reaction and perspective....most of the time.  This should be our goal at least..  If we take care of ourselves perhaps with Reiki, meditation, giving love etc., we are more able to react and act in love. We can do Yarpalo most of the time.  But let's get real.  We are still human beings.  I think that Far too often we put unrealistic expectation on ourselves and on our spiritual leaders.  If we put ourselves or our spiritual leaders on a pedestal there is usually only one way to get off it.  And unless we are Yoga Flyers or Jesus Christ is usually isn't by ascension.

One of my first "soap box " lectures when someone takes their final Reiki Master Three training with me is that we don't have to be self actualized to become a Reiki Master.  No one would become one.  We just have to realize that we are committed to continue to evolve and make that a priority in our lives. 

Does that mean we don't lose our temper, get ill or get off the path in some way?  Of course not.  But we expect ourselves to be perfect or we expect our spiritual leaders to be.  And then we end up getting disillusioned or disappointed.  Some of my favorite spiritual leaders are Marianne Williamson, Deepak Chopra and Wayne Dyer.  If you ever read or listen to their Audio tapes though you will hear many stories of their infallibility.  Marianne Williamson will tell stories of how she is at a party listening to an annoying woman and judging her.  Wayne Dyers will often tell stories of how  his kids call him on the carpet and accuse him of not practicing what he teaches.

 One of my favorite stories is from Deepak Chopra. He relates a time when he was getting ready for a major lecture and a woman from the audience came up to him and was very insistent that he meet with her afterwards.  He apologized and said he had commitments.  The woman got very hostile and was very insistent.  It was difficult for Chopra afterwards to get calm and do his speech.  Afterwards he went to his room to meditate to try to clear his mind.  He found it difficult so he called his best friend and asked, "Be honest, has there ever been a time that I have been annoying or negative with you."   Silence.  Chopra then called his wife and asked the same question.  He got the same response. He realized he too could act like that and he was then able to forgive himself and his "teacher."

But my all time favorite story is copied below.  It is from the best selling book, 'Eat Pray, Love."

"People on the island left me alone. I think I threw off a spooky vibe.  I had not been well all year....  So nobody talked to me.

Actually that's not true.  One person talked to me, every day.  It was this little kid, one of a gang of kids who run up and down the beaches trying to sell fresh fruit to the tourist.  This boy was maybe nine years old, and seemed to be the ringleader.  He was touch, scrappy and I would have called him street-smart if his island actually had any streets.  He was beach-smart.  And he was on to me, this kid.  Nobody else asked me who I was, nobody else bothered me, but This relentless child would come and sit next to me on the beach at some point every day and demanded, "Why don't you ever talk?  Why are you strange like this?  Don't pretend you can't hear me - I know you can hear me.  Why are you always alone?  Why don't you ever go swimming"  Where is your boyfriend?  Why don't you have a husband?  What is wrong with you?"

I was like, Back off, kid! What are you - a transcript of my most evil thoughts?

Everyday I would try to smile at him kindly and send him away with a polite gesture, but he wouldn't quit until he got a rise out of me.  And inevitably, he always to a rise out of me.  I remember bursting out at him once "I'm not talking because I'm on a friggin' spiritual journey, you nasty little punk - now go AWAY."

He ran way laughing...so did I."

So folks strive to send love to everyone, but let's remember to get real.  We all have those moments above and when we have them or when we obverse them in others, just laugh, learn and move on.  Those also are precious moments.  It is all perspective

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