Miracles

I feel like a little “magic” wouldn’t hurt right now. You know, a small miracle; something to get me through the day ’til five, the week ’til Friday, the months ’til summer.  And then, as if on cue, I get one of those forwarded e-mails, the kind that say if, and only if, I send it to 15 people something wonderful will happen at 10:37 a.m. the next day. I always follow through with those, but nothing ever happens at 10:37  the next day, at least I don’t think…I’m always doing something else at the prescribed time, and forget about the miracle that’s being delivered. Then I kick myself when I realize that once again, my ship probably came in, and as usual–I missed it.

I’m a little superstitious, but so what? Working hard, after all, hasn’t exactly paid off! Often, when I need to know what’s going to happen next, I refer to the magic 8-ball my daughter keeps on her dresser. After a good shake, the ball tells me exactly what I need to know. Sometimes I have to shake it a little to get the right answer, but eventually I do. I know–weird!

I found a wrapped fortune cookie at the bottom of my purse that I remember picking up at the Womens’ Expo. I gleefully tore the cellophane off, snapped the crescent in half and unfolded the strip of paper inside. It read:

“Correctal cancer is the second leading cancer killer of women over 50.”

That’s it? That’s my fortune? That’s a terrible fortune! Who gives fortunes like that?

I ate the cookie and threw away my fortune.

Luckily, a few minutes later, I got one of those forwarded messages that promised something at the end. It was from my sister, the who NEVER sends forwarding messages–EVER. It began like this:

“As I’ve aged, I’ve become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself. I’ve become my own friend…”

I’m thinking, why would my wise-cracking sister, who never forwards e-mail, be sending this poorly-written sentimental crap? This has to be a joke, I thought, so I keep reading.

“I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set. I will not waste time lamenting what could have been or what will be.  And I shall eat desert.”

Well, obviously the author here is eating desert.  She prefaced it by saying that she could hardly get into her bathing suit! Is it possible that she’s eating more than the recommended serving size–hello!

I know, I need to lighten-up and believe the real message implied; that in order for me to manifest the magic I crave, I must forgo ego-driven superficiality and become more centered. Apparently my only-wears-bikinis, size 4-sister, had turned a middle-aged corner.

“Nanci,” I said, “this forwarded e-mail isn’t really like you…I mean, the message is all well and good, but not at the expense of looking good, for Gods sake!

“Oh pay no attention to that,” she said, “I just wanted to see what would happen at the end.”

Ah, yes!  That would explain things. The end read;

“Forward this to at least 7 people and see what happens on your screen. You will laugh your head off.”

“So, what happened?” I asked.

“Nothing,” she said.

“But, you did what you were supposed to! Something should have happened! That’s just not right…”

I’m a little testy right now, because since the beginning of the year, I’ve been taking time out of my day to meditate. Guess what? Nothing ever happens at the end. I have had some interesting thoughts though, about breathing, that sort of came out of the blue–I know, weird! I started thinking about how every second that I draw a breath is sacred. That’s a miracle. If I stopped and just thought about nothing other than the rhythm of my breathing, I would truly understand.

I am suddenly realizing that as long as I continue the practice of waiting for something to happen, I’ll never see the true miracles that exist within all those seconds. Weird.

My cell phone signals me that someone has left a text message. It’s from the guy I had a date with two nights, nine hours ago. He wants to know if I want to go out again.

OK, where was I? Oh yes, breathing. Breathing is good.

But, if you really want to make something good happen, you have to be patient and wait~

Then give the 8-ball another shake.