If you have been wondering where my lessons are, I chose to quiet my voice rather than disturb your journey.  However, I do intend to document my path through A Course in Miracles.  I am currently studying Lesson 85, which has two parts.

It was a profoundly rich lesson.  And God used the most extraordinary lesson plan to teach the class.

I’ve been struggling with ego and entitlement …I try to live each day in humility and gratitude, but every once in awhile ego and her entourage show up.  This week I have allowed myself to wallow in the depths of despair while I argue with my son, mourn the memory of both of my parents, and struggle with the real problems of this world.

Yet … I humbly realize just how “first world” my problems are.  I whine and cry that life is unfair – because it isn’t perfect – but I have much to be thankful for.  I should be grateful that I have enough income to pay taxes.  That doesn’t remove the obligation of my government for fiscal responsibility, but I try to have good faith that I am helping others as I was helped during my cancer treatment.

God chose several roundabout ways to put that lesson in front of me.  A word of advice … give up television for a year.  And read.  You get so much more.

My morning was a sea of back-to-back meetings, including a lunch meeting, while trying to maintain control over my personal domain.  I grabbed the mail on the way out this morning and was happy to see a little package from amazon.ca had arrived.  I stuffed it into my purse and headed to the office while having three (hands-free) conversations on my phone.

When I had a few moments to spare, I opened an email from Pandora which arrived in my inbox to advertise the new releases.  I allowed myself to dream of all the new bling I could buy … and in rode Greed with her two sisters.

As I looked at the beautiful new pieces of jewelry – $100 for a pair of earrings, another $300 for charms …. and ooooooooh!  Maybe I deserved a new bracelet with a new theme as well?  That would be at least another $100.  As I sat there and window shopped, I forgot to be thankful for the jewelry I have.  I have three Pandora bracelets AND a Pandora ring that I  wear on my left – with five other Alex & Ani bracelets.

Why do I want another bracelet?  Will it make me happy?  No.  It might for a few seconds … but then the novelty will wear off and I will want more.  And more.  And MORE!

Very soon, I was miserable.  I missed the Tiffany bracelet I lost and wanted shiny new things.  But WHY do I need them?

I don’t.

Just because I can have them doesn’t mean I should.  Not while children go hungry and dogs perish in shelters.

I took the tiny package from my purse and opened it.  For $3USD I had purchased five fake Bitcoins.  If you read about crypto-currency, you’ve probably seen the shiny gold coins which represent Bitcoin … but there is no physical Bitcoin.  My coins are a novelty – fakes – rather than counterfeit.  A real Bitcoin is going for $8,420.66CAD today, down from the $21,000 several months ago.

They are striking “fakes” … well made, good weight to them, but not worth the free shipping on a slow boat from China that they arrived on.

I’ve contemplated whether crypto-currency with be the prophesied world currecy the bible speaks of.  But I realized in an instant that God had reaffirmed a message … it’s all fake.

Our legal tender is real money … but what does it represent?  It’s the means to buy meaningless bling.  Sure it also puts food on my table, a roof over our heads and I paid cash for some signs I had painted as gifts for colleagues.  I was happy to purchase these from a local lady and support her business, which is putting food on her table and a roof over her family’s heads.  And those of her employees.

“My grievances hide the light of the world in me.”

Several years ago, I raised donations and money for a Women’s Shelter.  The response was overwhelming.  We made Christmas personal and special for over thirty women and their children.  We asked for wish lists and made sure everyone had something they wished for.

One little boy on the spectrum would only wear long-sleeved tshirts with diggers on the front … so I was on a mission to find one.  I hunted high and low through all the stores, but diggers weren’t hot in boys fashion that year.

I went into Osh K’Osh and told a sales person what I was looking for, and why.  She hunted and found the perfect tshirt in the back – long sleeved, right size and it had a big, huge digger on the front.  She mentioned there were only the two left, so I asked her if I could have them both.

The store sold them to me with an additional deep discount so I spent less than $7 per tshirt.  I was thrilled, and couldn’t wait to show it to the staff at the Women’s Shelter.

We got a thank you after Christmas that the boy who wouldn’t take off his long sleeved digger shirt loved his new tshirts!  And I am sure his Mom was thankful there were two.

So … why do I need a new Pandora bracelet?

I don’t.

I read a story about poverty, and since I can’t pinpoint its source, I will have to rewrite it and rephrase it to share with you.

A wealthy business man decided to show his son how much wealth they had.  He pulled him into the car and told him they were going on a trip to the country.  The father and son drove for hours before arriving at the simple home of a poor family.

Their outing stretched from hours into days, so the father could really show his son how the other half lived.  They finally said their thanks and bid the poor family farewell.  The father got into his flashy SUV and said “Well son, what did you think?  Did you notice the difference between the rich and the poor?”

“I did, Father.” the boy said.  “Thank you for showing me so I understand.”

“What did you see, my son?”

“We only have one dog … and they have at least three!  We have a pool in our backyard but did you see the rope swing they had by the river?!”  The boy said excitedly.  “We have so many bright lights, but they … they have a beautiful view of the stars.  We spend money to buy food, but for them it grows on trees!”

The boy sat back in the passenger seat in wonder.  “And Dad, did you see how their neighbours came to check on them?  We only have a high fence and security system.”

The father was stunned into silence, while his son continued.

“Thank you, Dad, for making me understand just how poor we are …”

I want that kind of weath.

The second part of today’s lesson is “My salvation comes from me.”

I don’t need jewelry.  I want peace … and love … and happiness.  I want everyone fed, cared for, and loved.

So instead of buying myself Pandora charms, I will do what I did two years ago … and by crock pots for the Women’s Shelter.  When they re-establish the women and their children, they try to give them all the necessities.  A crock-pot was a favourite item.

But you won’t see one around my wrist.

Still learning,

The Fox

Read the Fox blog:  Hear what the Fox really has to say

© 2018