Chapter 16: Trust

“Whatever the task that your soul has agreed to, whatever its contract with the Universe, all of the experiences of your life serve to awaken within you the memory of that contract, and to prepare you to fulfill it.”

GARY ZUKAV

Alexandra:

So this idea that we had a sacred agreement with the universe before incarnating into this earthly realm is something beautiful to grasp. When Gary spoke about our memory of this becoming soft on p.225 I could clearly understand that. I’ve always found it interesting the route our lives can take before we remember our initial agreement. Like imagine if we all not only remembered it but were also encouraged to nurture it? What would the energy of that feel like in our society? 
Gary speaks on how our life experiences bring us more in alignment with our soul’s desire, which he’s mentioned before, but he added something else this time that added another element to it. He said “these experiences are not necessarily experiences that the personality would choose” on p.225 and I was like ‘yeah, those are the experiences that I am not so quick to want to remember or speak on!’ It also made me think about you and the physical environment that you’re currently in and how you interpreted what he was saying. But if you think about it, if we only experienced everything that we liked, could we actually evolve from that?

Brandon:

Reading this chapter has been a reminder of just how far I have to go in developing that Supreme Trust, which is necessary on the path of an authentically empowered person. As someone who has resided in prison for decades, and it hurts to say that, trust is one thing that most people in my position struggle with. We get to a point where we lack trust in the people around us, the staff, the government, courts, then that extends to family, friends, lovers/partners, and goes even further to society, the planet, and as far as to God, or the concept of God, and unfortunately it circles back around to us saying that we really don’t trust ourselves. Imagine an environment where, behind all of the bravado and bluster, no one trusts one another and even themselves. This is what I was lost upon, until just recently, where I understood how much this influenced me in my lack of trust in people, processes, and even in me personally. How does an atmosphere like this thrive and produce? It can’t! So it was fitting that Gary chose to have the ideal of trust as how he flower-topped this journey to be aligned with one’s soul. On further review, all processes lead to trust. In science, when someone follows the scientific method, they end up with a conclusion, which suggests they “trust” the process, experiments, and findings. When someone working on an assembly line making Ford trucks gets to the end, they “trust” that the truck will hold up to the rigors of the road. If this trust is absent, then logically we can say the process is not finished. Am I saying that prison, more than likely, is creating unfinished, inconclusive, defective products? Regrettably yes. This is why exercises like this is vital, as it forces us to examine do we trust ourselves and our many fruits. And there is never anything wrong with us looking at what we trust and why.

“The personality that is engaged in the work of its soul is buoyant. It is not burdened with negativity. It does not fear. It experiences purposefulness and meaning. It delights in its work and in others. It is fulfilled and fulfilling.”

GARY ZUKAV

Alexandra:

And speaking of learning and growing, I really appreciated what he said on p.226 about our non-physical Teachers not being able to interfere with our growth and the choices we make. It brought to my mind parenthood in our society and the ways it can be “taught” even though we know that there is no perfect manual on how to parent a child, even if we think we got it down, something will come up to show us that we have yet to fully understand it. Imagine how some parents want to protect their child from everything and at times can be overbearing and stifling, is it possibly because we try to control other people that we suffer more!? Now I’m also not saying that you should just let your child run off a cliff but what does it look like in a relationship for each person to fully allow the other to go through life and fully experience it? Whether that be a parent-child, married couple, friends, siblings, co-workers, etc. How can we be unattached but operate from an empowered heart like Gary speaks about when it comes to trusting others, ourselves and the Universe?

Brandon:

Starting with page 225, where before Gary talks about us developing trust in our soul, and ends up discussing us remembering what our individual soul’s task is, He says we remember by paying attention to what we are engaged in that is purposeful and full of synergy. I found this to be crucial, as when we assess what or who should be willing to give our trust to, we do not pay attention to the signs or energy that comes with trusting. Trusting does involve being engaged in not only the act of trusting and deeds that will sustain this trust, but a certain energy output that ensures and fuels us to keep trusting. So often we don’t trust our feelings, and yeah they may be skewed, but they still serve a purpose and if you are living authentically, you have no reason to not trust your feelings about your life and its dynamics. Trust what you are engaged in, especially if it is producing love, truth, and progress. In prison, it is hard to create activities that are worthy of being overwhelmingly positive and progressive, but there are still options, and one has to come to trust that these experiences are worthwhile and will add to my soul’s integrity.

“The journey to authentic power requires that you become conscious of all that you feel. The unearthing and healing of your negativities may appear to be an endless process, but it is not.”

GARY ZUKAV

Alexandra:

And can I just say that my new favorite quote on p. 229, “Find me where you know I need to be” is my new daily mantra! Like how fresh is that line tho!? Now there is one part of the chapter that touched me profoundly and really made me realize the importance of embodying this thing called trust. On p. 232 Gary said, “Open yourself to your fellow humans. Allow yourself to experience what you feel toward them, and to hear what they feel. Your interactions with them form the basis of your growth. When you fear what you will find in yourself, or what you will find in others and don’t allow yourself to hear what others have to say, you turn your back on the opportunities that the Universe is giving you to find the power of your heart, the power of compassion. It is not until you have the courage to engage in human relationships that you grow.” Heart work is something man! It’s not always fun and oftentimes I feel like I don’t even have the roadmap to understand it all. But I do take it one day at a time and one interaction at a time while understanding that everything is working out the way it is supposed to.

Brandon:

The last profound part that was worthy of discussion was when Gary spoke on us trusting ourselves to heal ourselves. Wow! To think that we don’t trust ourselves to go through, or initiate, the process of healing is daunting. Our bodies, and the energy that propels and maintains them, are inherently big healing machines, as they heal themselves from foreign material and invaders, wounds, and other harmful viruses. Even our dreams try to correct the self-imposed limitations we place on ourselves, where we can be and do just about anything in our dreams. Entertain that, while we are dreaming our immune systems are sending blood cells to damaged parts, creating inflammation responses, and any other necessary activities. But when it comes to the voluntary and conscious parts of people, we lack the will and understanding to fix ourselves. We need shrinks, doctors, and fortune tellers to help us. What does that say about us? I think what Gary is saying is to allow the same energy and consciousness intelligence that fixes all the aches and pains in us to address the problems with our love lives, careers, and social ills. Listen to your inner Doctor and Shaman, just listen and trust!

“Let go of what you think is just reward. Let go. Trust. Create. Be who you are. The rest is up to your non-physical Teachers and the Universe.”

GARY ZUKAV