“We are visitors on this planet. We are here for ninety or one hundred years at the very most. During that period, we must try to do something good, something useful, with our lives. If you contribute to other people’s happiness, you will find the true goal, the true meaning of life.”
It is true that we are visitors on this planet, but that does not mean we are . . . guests. There’s a difference.
I love entertaining in my home. Really love it! From the personalized name plates to the crystal goblets to the perfect candles to the linen napkins, it’s a creative experience that brings me great joy. It is FUN!
I have one very basic rule – guests are to be treated like royalty. They are simply asked to relax, enjoy, and feel special.
I’m always intrigued, however, that some people have a hard time with my expectations. Sometimes they appear uncomfortable, especially after dessert has been served. I’ve seen people DEFY the rule that “guests do not pick up dishes after a meal”. They can’t stand it. They just HAVE TO carry some dishes over to the sink. I’m serious. They cannot simply RECEIVE. What’s with that?
There are, thankfully, other guests who come and allow themselves to be totally pampered and are most grateful for the fun, restful experience.
These special times of “just receiving” are important for our restoration and in-joyment in life. And when we do not have times to “simply receive”, it’s like exhaling without inhaling. It creates a problematic imbalance (like passing out).
Noting that it’s important we receive, it’s also important to remember that we did not arrive on this planet to be entertained as guests. We arrive as visitors – passing through. We appreciate and respect what we’ve been given. We don’t really own anything, ultimately. We’re just passing through.
However, though we are just passing through, we are here for a short while. It makes sense while we’re here to figure out how we want to participate, contribute, and serve. We are here to expand out into the world with our talents, wisdom, gifts, and creativity. We are given the opportunity to open our hearts, roll up our sleeves, and bravely trust that what we bring to this planet is of value – unique; unlike and unmatched by anyone else. Like a snowflake or a diamond. Beautifully exquisite.
When we give from this beautifully exquisite, generous, precious, resilient, loving place inside, it is impossible to not bring happiness to others. Simply impossible. It is equally impossible to not experience happiness – like breathing out and breathing in, as it should be.
Might we be rejected, misunderstood, or devalued? Yup.
And we carry on – not holding our breath in fear; rather moving out into life knowing the truth of who we really are and what we really bring, as visitors to this planet.
The true goal – to show up from the clear, loving, most powerful awareness of your essence; to give from that place; and to receive the joyful satisfaction of contribution – is to inhale and exhale the flow of life’s energy. Knowing that we all experience joy and sorrow, gain and loss, strength and weakness; it is to participate in the expansive celebration of the kaleidoscope of life. It is to know that our participation as a visitor – as an ambassador of love on this planet – is indeed important.
