Bold Questions

A couple of days ago, one of my friends posted on question:

I know this is a bold question but can anyone buy or cook me breakfast today.  I really need something positive from the universe.  

I saw this at about noon.  I looked at her comments and someone had said that she just sent her kids off to school and to come over.  My friend responded that she would be right over.  That was the first comment.  There were many following indicating that they would open their homes or wallets and provide her with breakfast.  

I confess when I first read her post, I breathed a sigh of relief that I hadn't seen it hours earlier.  Then, I would have been in a dilemma.  My floor is really dirty and I've been procrastinating getting it clean.  

It doesn't matter how many times people say, I am going to visit you and not your house, I'm still not comfortable allowing people to see that I am not perfect.  Which is about the silliest thing ever.  Everyone knows that I'm far from perfect.  

It was obvious from my friend's post that she was in need of nourishment, not only for her body, but for her soul.  And, she asked for help.  And, she got it.  

I'm sure that breakfast meant the world to her and really was a positive sign from the universe.  It never would have happened had she not asked.  Why do we assume that people are mind readers?  Whenever we are feeling vulnerable or helpless, many of us keep this inside expecting those who love us just to automatically know and provide.  

A couple of months ago, my sweetie and I found ourselves with a problem.  In the end, it was much ado about nothing.  It sure didn't seem like that at the time.  We were gripped with despair and a feeling of hopelessness that managed to permeate throughout all aspects of our life.  For a few days, we never even gave a casual thought to asking for hlep.  After all, we are independent adults.  After a few days, we realized that we didn't have a magic wand and ignoring the problem wasn't helping.  We decided we needed some help.  We made a list of people that could help.  Then, we threw the list away.   There was no way that either of us could ask the bold question of requesting help.  In the end, we did ask for help.  We asked google.  Once we were told the answer, we felt silly at how obvious it was and what an easy solution there was.  

We might have had not a week of agony had we asked for help when the problem emerged.  But, that would make us vulnerable.  That is a tough place for many to be in.  

I admire people who work in sales.  I never would be able to do that.  To hear "no' over and over again in order to get to the yes.  I think my psyche is too fragile to hear so many negatives.  I would take it too literally.  I wouldn't be able to separate that they were rejecting the product and not rejecting me as a human being.  

There is a lot of anecdotal evidence to suggest that if we don't ask, we simply don't get what we want.  Wayne Gretzky said, "we miss 100% of the shots we don't take."  And, that quote has also been attributed to Michael Jordan.  Regardless, the sentiment is still the same.  If you take a risk or ask a bold question, you have the possibility of being successful.  If you sit back afraid to take a risk or "take that shot", you have no possibility of being successful.  

The difference between doing nothing and doing something is infinite.  

I would like to think that I would be there for someone if they asked.  (But, I would need 20 minutes notice to tidy up.)  

A friend of mine made a statement about a week ago.  He said, "I am going to continue to toss out seeds and see what grows."  That statement continues to resonate with me.  It is so simple.  If you keep asking questions or putting energy out to the universe, something may grow.  It may not be what you want, but it is something and it is up to you to make use of it.  In other words, you play the hand that you were dealt.  

Poker players know that the odds of flopping a royal flush are incredibly low.  Yes, poker players also know that it is possible.  So, even though the odds are stacked against them, there are probably millions of people around the world playing poker right now with the hope of that happening.  If you are not in the game, you can't win.  

We have been told since we were young children that there are no stupid questions.  (Although, I actually have heard a few.)  How do we go from hearing that a thousand or so times to being afraid to ask a bold question?  In the end, my friend was provided a couple of slices of toast and a couple of eggs.  It wasn't really that bold of a question.  

We make emotions bigger in our minds.  By not asking the bold questions, we make them bolder.  

Google can answer a lot of questions but it can never nourish our body nor give us a soul nourishing hug.  

It is a giant shift in my personal paradigm, but I'm going to try asking more bold questions and I'm going to scattering more seeds.  No matter what grows, I will experience gratitude.  Gratitude that, if nothing else, my courage is growing.