Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Things Are Getting Clearer

Years ago I was ghostwriting a book about the Chincoteague Ponies on Chincoteague Island and went out to spend 2 weeks on the island.  One early morning I hiked a couple miles or so down the beach to get away from the crowds and hunkered down on a log to wait for a very special "happening" that only happened once a year. 

The beach was shrouded in fog but the sun, as it rose above the horizon, cast sparkling lights across the emerald waves topped with frothy whiteness.  I basked in the beauty, while also peering into the fog that was beginning to be swallowed by the sun's rays.  The fog muted any sounds but the nearby seagulls but I knew it would happen any minute. 

As I peered down the beach I think I felt it before I actually saw it... The fog seemed to get darker, and then a little darker, and then... out popped the first head of a pony!  Within moments the beach was alive with 100+ wild Chincoteague Ponies, encased in a "Living Corral" of 30 or so Chincoteague cowboys who were riding in a rectangular formation. 

Waves were crashing.  Mamma ponies were calling to the 60 or so foals prancing through the herd - dashing back and forth down the beach within the confines of their corral.  The men were yelling out and the clink of bridles and saddles formed an amazing musical backdrop.  Wow!  I just sat back on my log and drank in the magic of what I was seeing.

The cowboys (who by the end of the week would all become friends) tipped their hats at me and smiled as they surged by.  They told me later they'd never have anyone come so far down the beach to usher them in.

12 years later, the image of the first pony head popping from the fog has never lost it's magic.  It's close to how I feel right now.  There has been so much "fog" during the last month, and especially during the last week of closing down My Power Mall.  Yet I've learned that if I watch hard enough that I will understand and gain clarity from even the foggiest experiences. 

In the last couple days I have watched a lot of "pony heads" come popping out of the fog. :)  I realize that while My Power Mall had the potential to be great for so many people, it just wasn't meant to continue.  I realize that the management of My Power Mall had taken us from our real purpose - the only reason we created MPM 3 years ago - Together We Can Change The World.  While TWCCTW was always my main driving passion, the reality of 80-90 hour weeks running MPM severely impacted what we could do and too many people had their main focus on making money - not on making a difference.

While I so appreciate the need to make money, and we so wanted to help people with that, it is obviously not ours to do or My Power Mall would have survived.  As each day passes I am finding more peace in that reality. So many exciting things are happening right now and I'm seeing things so much more clearly.  I will share it all with you in the days to come.

However you feel about My Power Mall and the circumstances of your own life, I encourage you to do two things.  Go the extra mile (walk further down the beach) to gain the clarity that you want.  And, two, peer hard into the fog.  If you stay focused and watch as hard as you can, you WILL gain clarity and you will get your answers. 

No matter how hard things may seem, or how confusing they may be, there is good that can come from every single thing.  I'm not saying everything that happens is good - I'm just saying good can come from every single thing.  Sometimes the fog is a little thicker and it may take longer before the "pony heads" come popping out but I am convinced they are hiding in every situation you face.

Thank you for joining me on this journey of life and thank you for wanting to make a difference.  My challenge to you today is to do ONE THING to make a difference in someone's life.  It doesn't have to be big.  Hundreds, then thousands, and then Millions of us each doing one small thing will have a massive impact on the world. 

My vision for that is stronger than ever!!