Life is just one high trapeze….we all go out in the morning, swinging through the air, performing acrobatics and somersaults, jumping from one end to the other, hoping that everything goes according to plan, and Synchronicity prevails. Below us, waiting, is the beloved safety net that we depend upon to catch us when things go wrong.

There are many in the audience who watch us perform on the high-wire. Some cheer us on, others boo, but on we go sailing through the air with confidence that all will go well, and we will never fall….then, out of the blue, a slip of a hand, a twist of a leg, and before too long we are free-falling through the air with ours eyes glued on that safety net, hoping that it has been well-maintained to catch us before we hit the ground. This week, in Littleton, Colorado, the safety net failed.

A group of teenagers, who call themselves “The Trenchcoat Mafia” made the headlines around the world. Two of its members decided to enter their high school with over thirty pipe bombs and multiple weapons to kill as many people as they could, including themselves. How could this happen? This has now been the eighth occurrence of this kind of violence in schools, in the past two years, across the United States. So what can be said of life on the trapeze? When the safety net becomes withered and torn, or simply not put up at all, fatalities can be the only outcome. None of us are perfect, and we all make mistakes, and yes, once in awhile we walk along the wrong road in life or swing the wrong way on the trapeze, but as a society we depend on the safety nets to catch those who are confused and off-balance.

So what can be said for our “trusty” safety net? The fabric of our society? The rope that is supposed to protect us, sometimes even from ourselves? The first section of the net is made up of our families, the second, our schools, the third, our communities, and so on, until each become interconnected…..but beware, one who falls from the trapeze these days better land in the most secure section of the net, because there are many nets out there that are starting to show gaping holes that are growing with time.

Who is to blame… the media? the guns? the internet? That’s just pointing the finger. I believe the answer lies much deeper, under the surface, than we realize. If we put bad things into our bodies, bad things happen. If we put bad thoughts and bad messages into our minds, bad things happen. If all the guns, all the bombs, all the knives, were removed from society in the morning, I do believe those two individuals who found it appropriate to massacre would have just as easily walked through the door with spears and bows and arrows, or something else. They found it very easy to make homemade bombs….all they would have done was transfer their weapons of choice. The mind is the ultimate weapon. Until we deal with this, the tools may change, but the mental machine will seek out new avenues to accomplish its mission. The information that we take in as individuals are seeds that, when fertilized, grow at an alarming rate. It’s that simple. Those individuals in Colorado embraced some of the most evil ideology that we have on this planet. Is it truly any surprise what happened? And how many more out there are waiting for their fifteen minutes of fame?

These days many of us mind our own business, lock our doors, and refuse to get involved. We’re afraid of lawsuits, people being angry at us, neighbors calling us nosy…..hey, who doesn’t want to be liked? Then one afternoon, at one thirty, a newsflash comes across the television, and this time it’s not someone’s else’s school, but our own…. and it’s not their kids, it’s our kids, and our families. I pray over the next few days I start to see members of Congress looking for solutions, not bogging themselves down in political rhetoric. This is truly a “wake-up” call…we can either get out of our beds or go back to sleep.

Check your net,

Jennifer Avalon
© 1999 Jennifer Avalon

Maybe…..a very interesting little word. It’s neither here nor there, up or down, left or right…… hanging on the fence, looking around, and waving at everybody. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could live in a world where we didn’t have to make any decisions, no mistakes, and have no one mad at us for standing up for our point of view…..all the world huddled in a little corner, saying “maybe.” There’s only one problem…..we would never really know how each of us truly feels. If all we do is say “maybe” then we have given up the right to complain when something goes wrong.

What do we think, what do we see, what do we feel? Any one of these thoughts, when expressed, take us away from the position of “maybe.” How many times have we all listened to somebody saying things like, “I didn’t hear about that,” “I don’t have time to watch the news,” or “I think voting is a waste of time.” “Maybe” likes us to waste time because we can put off decisions indefinitely. While we put things off until tomorrow, each day, little by little, our “maybe’s” rob us of our own power.

“Maybe” gives us a sense of false security. We think by not stating a point of view will result in everybody liking us…on the contrary. The respect we crave is diminished. When we say “maybe,” over time, piece by piece, we remove our credibility. Time after time “maybe” makes us stand by and watch injustice, abuse, and crimes. “Maybe” eventually takes away our voices and leaves us silent. For if a voice is not used, the vocal chords forget how to make sound. “Maybe” in the end means doing nothing…..”apathy.”

Each day we are all confronted with yes and no…..some yes’s are not always pleasant….some no’s are not always painful. The judgment rests on our own shoulders. Where does that leave “maybe?” Neither no or yes…a decision in limbo.

Embrace your decisions,
Jennifer Avalon
(c) 1999 Jennifer Avalon
© 1999 Jennifer Avalon

The way we view our lives always seems to be based on how we see the glass… half-full or half-empty… what we have, and what we don’t. Many of us spend the better part of our days chasing that which is beyond our reach, without reflecting on what has been accomplished.

When we see the glass half-empty, our insecurities, sense of purpose and contributions seem meaningless. Depression sets in and before too long we become motionless on the sea of life. We don’t like our homes, friends, families and most of all, ourselves. Some even capitalize on our shortcomings. It’s very interesting….when we look at our lives from a negative perspective, before you know it, standing right next to you is someone who adds their two cents. On the other hand, when we see the glass half-full, our sense of accomplishment becomes clearer, and the energy and confidence that is needed to thrust us forward is provided. Our hearts become open to lend a hand to those in need. The choice of how we see the glass is up to us.

Choices are never easy, and sometimes downright painful. Standing in the middle of a field, you see two fences on opposite sides. One is higher than the other, and that one falls under the glass half-full. To succeed in life requires energy, effort and faith. To climb over the higher fence may not be easy, but it can be done, and before too long that glass will become fuller and fuller until one day it overflows. The easy way out is to tackle the lower fence. No effort is required, and chances never need to be taken. But the problem with this fence is that before you know it, the glass runs dry. Watching from the sidelines are the fans…some cheering you on, some calling you a bum. Inside all of us is the strength to block out the negative voices and rise to the cheers.

The best glass of all is the one with the clear water that you can see right through….pure, calm, from which good things spring forth. Pollution has been removed from this glass. For this glass to exist, much work was performed. The task was not always easy…but there it is for all to see that it can be done, preserved and maintained. The well of life runs through all of us, and the purity of the water affects all. As with the glass, we are also responsible for the upkeep of the well. The purer the water, the stronger the well.

May your glass be full,

Jennifer Avalon
© 1999 Jennifer Avalon

This week I would like to push the envelope a little further in some thoughts about what I call the “Great Divide, ” the area where this world and the next intertwine.

Is it possible for an open communication line to develop between us and our deceased loved ones and friends? I’m not talking about hocus-pocus, seances, etc., but a personal exchange. How much can we hear if we cover our ears? How much can we see if we shade our eyes? As humans, everyday we transmit and receive thoughts to each other in all different forms of communication. Is it possible for the same skills to be raised to the next level? Energy does not die, so in theory and Faith, do we ever really die? Almost all of our major religions are based on communicating with deceased Great Ones. Each week around the world millions pray to Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha, and God. Do these people believe that their prayers are not being heard? I don’t think so. Then why can’t it be possible for our loved ones who have passed on to also hear our prayers…..

Sometime this week pick a space or a room where you can be alone with your thoughts. Make it as comfortable as possible, and allow your heart and mind to open up. Before I do this I always say a prayer for God’s Love to surround me. Some people call this meditation…..a form of quiet to get in touch with your thoughts and feelings, and perhaps the thoughts and feelings of those loved ones who have passed on. Many here on earth use prayer and meditation as forms of communication with Heaven.

Once we lose a mother, a father, a child or a dear friend, the empty void that some feel can become overwhelming. Some may feel that their lives are over, that the meaning to move forward is gone. Even though the hurt may never totally go away, if we can find ways to bridge the distance between the “living” and the “dead” our own lives can be greatly enriched. The Big Picture becomes clearer.

We all have to come to terms with Death, in our lives. The pain of it, the unfairness of it…..why can’t we live forever? Why is life so temporary? Maybe it’s meant to be temporary….and “somewhere else” is the permanency we crave for. In the center of the Great Divide is a bridge we all must eventually walk across…a bridge that connects two worlds…and because of this link, was there ever really a separation?

A friend of mine recently shared his thoughts about what he feels life is all about here. He saw all of us in a great big waiting room at a train station with trains whizzing in and out. Every five minutes a man shows up at the door and calls out a list of names and then says “All Aboard,” while others arrive with suitcases in hand, and fill the empty seats in the waiting room. A station that is open 24 hours a day!! In and out, coming and going…….

Take the time to love,

Jennifer Avalon
© 1999 Jennifer Avalon