Dodging storms & Chasing Rainbows – No overwhelm in the present

I was folding towels. I had added vinegar (a natural fabric softener) to the rinse cycle, and they came out fluffy and soft. They smelled good. They were still hot from the dryer. I held one to my face, feeling its warmth before folding it. As I made the final crease, my hand ran over its soft surface. Without any warning, my energy suddenly expanded beyond my body, merging with the towels, the washer, the dryer, the room, the house, and beyond. Unbounded love poured into my heart, pulsing with the rhythm of the universe. I was love and in love all at once. It lasted only a few minutes, then I was back to being Ann, folding towels and laughing with delight. “Enlightenment by laundry?!”

I couldn’t explain what had just happened, or why it happened to me when so many others spend years in meditation pursuing such experiences. I felt like the “Forest Gump” of the spiritual world. Years later, when I asked the angels, their answer was simple: “You were purely present—in a state of wonder and love for the richness of the moment.” True story.

I’ve had similar transcendent experiences on and off throughout the years, often at the weirdest times. Once, driving up north and marveling at the beauty of the day, I suddenly expanded into a distributed state of consciousness. I felt myself in the car, humming along the road. I was Ann, feeling her joy. I was the road, feeling the weight of the tires passing over me. I was the mountains with all their strength, and I was in the vast expanse of the sky… And then zap!—I was back to being Ann, just looking at the beautiful day.

The common denominator in each of these experiences was being in a state of pure presence filled with appreciation for the moment. You can’t fake that sort of feeling. You either genuinely feel blessed or not.

Over the years, I’ve made it a practice to look for the good everywhere—and the more I do, the more blessed I feel.

Recently, after being blessed by a Hindu saint, my swimming pool turned green. Around the same time, my 15-year-old disposal died. I became acutely aware of the need for a mental and physical detox—time to refocus myself on greater light. It was time to clean house—inside and out! My wonderful pool man, a young man of deep integrity who’s had as many spiritual experiences as I have (if not more), worked his magic, and the water turned sparkling blue again. In the process, we discovered that my entire cleaning system needed repairs. What looked like an expensive inconvenience was a blessing in disguise.

Every step of the repair journey brought beautiful people and magical conversations. The man who came out to repair the parts under warranty turned out to be a nature photographer. We swapped stories and momens of awe and appreciation. The man who installed my disposal shared his accounts of paranormal investigations. The man who takes care of my pool pointed out birds and wonders in my yard I had never seen, and we had amazing conversations about our spiritual journeys. Each connection felt like a divine appointment and a dance within a loving creation.

It did cost a bundle, and I’m working overtime to compensate—but I’m alive, and these interactions are pure gold. You can’t take your bank account with you, but you do take your beautiful memories. My spiritual account is filled with magic.

Overwhelm still gets me every now and then, but it never lasts long. Last weekend, I had a gazillion things to do, and I woke up on Saturday with my head spinning from the to-do list. I also wanted to hike on Sunday. Instead of leaping into action, I sat quietly during breakfast, focused on the beautiful rainy day and how great it would feel to be out in nature. Before lon,g I was inspired to do the first task, and then the next, and the next. By the end of the day, the to-do list was done and the hiking gear was in the car.

Sunday morning, I woke up early and got on the road, only to turn back home five minutes later when the clouds opened up and rained so hard I couldn’t see the road. I tried again in an hour and turned back once again as the next band of torrential rain made visibility impossible. We were experiencing the leftovers of a hurricane that had moved up the west coast of South America, and it was still strong. Thoughts spun through my mind, “Can I hike? Will I ever get out of town? Am I meant to stay home? It’s clear up north if I can just get there…” And then truth, “What are you creating, Ann?” the angels reminded me. I got present, dropped into my heart, and without thought replied, “I am creating the most beautiful day ever, enjoying the most gorgeous fall color, with blue skies and puffy clouds and safe passage.” It was no longer an overwhelmed plea, but rather an intentional focus.

I asked God and the angels to let me know when it was safe to get on the road. “Wait.” The feeling was obvious. “Just wait.” Half an hour later, a new feeling arrived.” Look at weather radar.” Perfection! If I left immediately, I could beat the next rain band before it hit the freeway, and would miss another one passing the highway farther north. I jumped in the car and took off. Sure enough, I drove out from under the ominious looking storm clouds and watched as another band of them passed over the road ahead. While driving through the rain-drenched, now sunny landscape, I was blessed as a rainbow arched overhead and ended on the road ahead of me. Glorious! And what a message!

Get present. Believe. You’ll avoid the storms. The sun will shine upon you, and rainbows of promise will pave your path!

It was one of the most beautiful fall days I’ve seen in ages—puffy clouds, golden aspens, crisp autumn air. Pure Heaven. One joyful moment at a time.

The tendency to feel overwhelmed persists from time to time. Tonight, it is after 9 p.m., and as I sat to write the newsletter, my computer informed me that it needed security updates. What I thought would take five minutes ended up being hours of updating and cleaning up every device in the house. Instead of spinning out, I took a breath, got present, started the upgrades, and refocused on writing. I feel energized again. The joy has returned.

Life is lived most fully when we embrace what’s in front of us rather than fighting it. When we do, the magic reveals itself in even the most mundane things and situations. Even folding towels, taking road trips, and fixing computer issues can all lead to transcendent experiences. It all begins when we surrender to the beauty we can find in each moment.

Here are a few tips for elevating the mundane—and avoiding overwhelm:

1.  Ponder the miracle of an ordinary thing.

Pick anything—your phone, a crystal, your coffee, your hand—and really look at it. Think of all the hands and hearts that helped bring it to you, or the miracle of nature that created it. Let yourself feel wonder and appreciation. In an instant, in that moment, there is peace. When you return to your to-do list, you’ll feel more focused, blessed, and ready.

2. Make an “angel honey-do” list.

An older client once joked that she always had a honey-do list for her husband, as in, “Honey, do this, and Honey, do that.” Why not make one for your angels!

Write down everything you think you have to do, then everything you’d like to do. Offer it to your angels in prayer, a journal, or toss the list in a special box. Ask them to let you know what to do and when. Do what you know to do now, and then wait for guidance. Spirit can organize our days and our task lists far more efficiently and easily than we ever could.

3. Question what you “must” do.

Many of the things we think we must do aren’t true musts. Sometimes it’s more of a want to. For example, I didn’t have to fix my computer tonight—but I wanted to. The small shift in thinking from “I have to” to “I want to” gives you a sense of true freedom.

Try picking one thing you don’t really have to do right now and remind yourself: “I don’t have to do this now. I want it to be done, but I don’t have to do it now.” Then, from that freedom, choose whether you really want to.

quickly. I have so many creative projects I want to do, so many I want to serve, so many financial things to get in order, so many home repairs to do, and yet it all gets done. It is all a part of life, and part of what can either be loved…or not.

I have chosen to make peace with what I am doing in the moment, with what I honestly can do in a given day, and in that “slowing down” of my mind, I actually speed up what gets done. I enjoy the journey of life. And somehow the must-dos get done. The want to do’s find their place in my life eventually, and the arbitrary should do’s that aren’t really should’s fall away.

In slowing down my mind and dropping into the present, however, I actually get more done. I enjoy the journey. Somehow, the must-dos get done, the want-to’s find their place, and the should-do’s fall away.

In the present moment, I enjoy life—one step at a time.