Power to Trust…

Hi EveryOne, Happy August.
Thank you to those wonderful souls who connected with me over the last month – through group activities as well as individual connections – your strength and courage continues to inspire me. Thank you for trusting me through the process 🙂 Keep an eye on this space for any upcoming events over the following months because it’s time to cultivate – our Power to Trust…

Many of you have been with me since I published my first book – Will to Wonder, Principles on the loss and discovery of power – in 2010 and know that we’ve been ‘Gypsies’ most of that time. A few months ago I wrote an article about trust for our Brahma Kumaris Connection Magazine – using our nomadic adventures as an example. So I thought it would be fun to share it with you (albeit an edited version) as some of the ‘BK’ terminology would spark confusion. So enjoy 🙂

“Trusting the World Drama: Adventures of the Gypsy BK’s”

How does a ‘celibate BK couple’ accomplish a nomadic life for 6.5 years?… With lots and lots of love, trust, tolerance, patience, flexibility and determination 🙂

Selling our home in Queensland to ‘hit the road’ to ‘serve’ others marked the beginning of many interesting adventures – some magical, some shook us to our very core. Thus the key ingredient in our recipe for success was Trust. First off, it took 3 Estate Agents and 18 months to sell the house. Giving it one last shot – we decided if we were really meant to do this, the house must be sold within 30 days – or else we were meant to stay and do something else… It sold in 30 days!

After paying off our debts we bought an 18ft caravan and a second-hand four wheel drive – with enough money left to sustain our travels for 6 months (who knew it would become 6.5 years). So in December 2010 we moved into our caravan, giving away the remainder of our belongings to travel light… Our adventures came thick and fast – flying high one moment, crashing and burning the next. But we were on a ‘mission from God’ and we trusted the ‘drama of life’ (or so we thought). I had just published my first book ‘Will to Wonder’ which unintentionally coincided with our travels. Unbeknownst to me, it was to become my most valuable tool to organise programs ahead. You see, going from town to town offering spiritual programs was not a simple task (nor some airy-fairy concept). It took a lot of hard work and was confronting on many levels – some communities were open and accepting but many were not, particularly in regional areas – so the book really helped.

With several programs now booked along the way (taking months of planning and organising) our first destination was Far North Queensland. Traveling North just after Cyclone Yasi (while getting used to towing a caravan and living in a small space together) roads opened a day before, just in time for us to drive through. Seeing the devastation first hand was surreal – water lapping the side of the roads, houses filled with mud or completely flattened, remaining trees now standing naked. Interestingly, this scenario repeated several times over the years to come. Cyclone Marcia. Cyclone Debbie. Each time, the roads opened literally a day before to let us through. Further South – NSW, Victoria – we just missed several devastating fires. Then… A hail storm – with caravan repairs over $20,000 and stuck in a motel for 6 weeks. But traveling across the Nullabor into WA fortune smiled on us again – one day’s grace saw us missing a week of 50 degree heat. And so it went… Wow the drama of life! We felt blessed and protected, that is, when we remembered our highest purpose – which we sometimes forgot.

Towing a caravan around Australia is not a cheap exercise and being self employed, income is sporadic, so we picked up paid work where possible – particularly when money was scarce. The meditation programs were offered free of charge. So at times we had to stay longer or change direction instantly – which meant canceling a program that took months to organise – so letting go was essential. Being a published author does not instantly make you rich. Or famous. On the contrary – editing, printing, marketing, promoting, etc takes a lot of effort, it’s costly and it can easily knock your confidence. So we lived very basically – staying in free camping spots between towns – meeting many interesting (some shady) characters… With little support, many assumptions were regularly made about our lifestyle, with many skeptics giving their two cents worth. Interestingly, our challenges were not so much from the comments of others but more about self-doubt and self-sabotage. And though the judgements of others can be cruel, it made us stronger. Trust, flexibility and tolerance became obvious and essential – knowing firsthand the swiftness of old ‘triggers’ when our meditation was lacking and giving the opinions of others permission to weigh us down.

As many of you know, I also live with osteo-arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia which is difficult at any time – but being on the road and dealing with different doctors, different opinions, different tests, was not easy by any stretch of the imagination. Still, we kept going – that’s what faith does. That’s not to say we didn’t feel disheartened because we did, many times! And though we loved our Gypsy life and help empower those in need (and would do it all again) it was not nearly as ‘romantic’ as many speculated. It took commitment, cooperation, hard work, patience, sheer determination, minimalist living and ultimately our Power to Trust… But experience taught us that when we showed courage Divine Spirit showed his true magic – giving us more courage, more determination, more faith. You see, faith, didn’t get us going. No, our faith strengthened because we kept going. The results were amazing – and when we trusted, we not only survived, we thrived…

Fast forward to August 2018. We’ve been based in Burrum River (North of Hervey Bay) for 15 months and now offer spiritual programs and meditation classes around the Fraser Coast Region. We rent a small plot of land on 50 acres, from a lovely retired couple. They have 3 dogs, 6 chickens, 2 donkeys and the neighbours cattle roam on the property to keep the grass down. We share a vegetable garden that’s nourished by a dam, as we only have tank water. We still live in our caravan and bought a 9 x 3 metre Donga (demountable building) for extra space. As ‘newcomers’ to the region, business is slow and finances are low. But that’s ok, we love to live ‘outside the box’ as our trust in the drama of life continues to be refined with every new life experience. God’s love sustains us more than anything this physical world could offer and sharing His knowledge is a privilege – not to be taken for granted – we are merely ‘sign posts’… And though we live a life that’s vastly different to most , we’re not unique in wanting some peace, so if we can indirectly help others along the way, well that’s just a bonus 🙂

Question: Do I trust in my own abilities and in the drama of life?

Consideration: How might I be able to strengthen those abilities to give myself (and those around me) a smoother ride in life?

Action: For the month of August practice your ‘Traffic Control’ to enable you to check where you may be sabotaging your Power to Trust. Give yourself permission to apply a brake regularly throughout your day – to stop, to breathe, to look up and to ‘check and change’ yourself – to trust and to let go of what you can’t control. Happy thoughts – happy life 🙂

Lots of love, Annemarie 🙂