Did you know you can’t cash a check if it has blood on it? Want to know how I found that out?
My intention is to always honor the inklings and nudging that I hear. I don’t want the Universe to have to dial up the volume to get my attention. I practice trusting my listening; and I teach people to listen and honor what they hear. A few days ago I was reminded, with a bit of gore, about why this listening is so important.
Here’s the story:
I drink Body Balance, a sea vegetable and aloe product of a company I respect called Life Force. Since I started drinking Body Balance three years ago this month, I’ve only been sick once, and for only a few days. I used to get three or four colds per year, so this is a big deal for me.
Life Force has an energy drink which has no junk in it and is actually good for you called True Boost. It’s peach flavored, and it makes me feel good so I drink it regularly.
Unfortunately, the pull tabs on the top of the bottles are not meant for mere mortals to peel off. Most of the time, I have to break the seal to open the bottle. Most of the time, I am smart about this process.
Okay, this is where I get stupid.
For some reason, I chose the other day to pick a sharp paring knife to try to break the seal on a True Boost bottle. This is obviously a bad idea. I banged on the top of the bottle and the knife bounced off. I think this made me a little mad, and a little stupid.
I banged on the top of the bottle again, and yet again my knife bounced off ineffectually. I downshifted into a Crazed Determination to Break the Seal.
Then I heard in my head a voice that said loudly and clearly, “Don’t do this! This is dangerous! Stop it!”
This was not a subtle inkling or a tiny whispery voice — this voice was as loud and clear as if someone were standing behind me.
I ignored the voice, and plunge the knife down one more time, slicing into my left thumb. I swore, through everything somewhere, stuck my bleeding thumb in my mouth, and rush to the bathroom to tend to my wound.
I should have known by how much it hurt when I put my thumb under the water faucet how bad my wound was, but I didn’t. I thought it was one of those cuts where you put some pressure on it for a while, it stops bleeding, then you put a Band-Aid on it and vow you never to do anything stupid with the knife again. Obviously, this was not my first run-in with a knife in the kitchen.
This was 9:20 AM and I had an appointment at a bank at 10 AM, a one-day only special deal where if I opened up a business account I would get $100. There was no way I was going to miss this appointment. It’s about a half an hour walk from my house, but I have an umbrella, and I thought all I had to do was put a little pressure on my thumb and all would be well.
I’m laughing at myself by this time, shaking my head in wonder that I ignored a warning I heard so clearly. Are we human beings funny or what?
I stuff the folder of all the papers I needed at the bank in my vest, tucked an umbrella under one arm, and put pressure on the wad of toilet paper I had over my cut on my thumb. Ready, set, walk to the bank!
When my folder jumped out from under my vest, spreading my papers out all over the sidewalk, I laughed again. This had to be funny because it was happening so it might as well be funny.
It was funny because I could see myself: here I am with this bloody bit of toilet paper on my thumb, umbrella under my arm, walking to the bank for this appointment, and my papers go all over the sidewalk. It might as well be funny because it is.
I am legally blind and I could not see how bad my cut was. This is important information for the next part of the story.
I get to the bank a little early, so I decide to cash two checks. I walk up to the window and tell the bank teller that I cut my thumb. I’m legally blind, so I don’t know how badly wounded I am. Could I go to the bathroom and take a look at it with the teller?
My guess is they don’t get asked to do this very often. But they were very cheerful and kind about it and when two tellers and I got to the bathroom and I pulled off the bloody toilet paper there was a slight intake of breath as one of the tellers said, “Ooo. This is very deep. You need to go to urgent care.”
Insert swear word here.
Well, this was just not what I had planned for the day. I washed my thumb, and put a new wad of toilet paper on it, put pressure on it and went back out to cash my checks. I am a determined person.
Unfortunately I couldn’t see that I did not have all the blood washed off my hands, so when I signed my check I got blood on it. As it turns out, there’s a policy with this bank that they will not accept checks with blood on them.
I thought this was very funny. “You mean you’ve had so many checks with blood on them you had to formulate a policy about it?” Now I started thinking the hazmat team would be in any moment to drag me off.
Here I am with blood all over my hands, possibly blood on my face because I did suck my thumb when I first cut it, and I can’t see, so I might even look like a vampire. I try not to bother people, but I am bleeding all over the bank. I am causing trouble and I am out of control. Messy, messy, messy — definitely not perfect at all.
But I am at least cheerful. Believe it or not, I got my bank account, without leaving blood on anything else as far as I know. I was then thanked for my patients. Are you kidding me? I said to the bank clerk, “My patience? You’re the one who’s patient.”
I called a friend who took me to urgent care and had my 1 inch wound glued together. It could have been so much worse, the doctor told me. I could have cut through a joint, or sliced off a chunk of meat, or needed stitches. Lucky, lucky, lucky I was.
Here’s the point.
- Every day we are given invitations to listen to a higher wisdom, a deeper truth that lives inside of all of us.
- Every day we choose to lean in and trust or to contract in fear and anger.
- Every time we don’t listen to our inner Knowing, overwriting it because of a petulant sense of urgency or because we don’t want to look foolish, we are inviting pain into our lives.
- Every time we don’t Listen, we are apt to end up bleeding some of our life energy into situations we have created.
Do I believe I was punished because I didn’t listen? No — an emphatic no! I believe that gravity exists and that if I don’t pay attention to where I’m walking and how I pick up my feet, I am more likely to trip over something and fall down. Gravity is not picking on me. This is the natural order of things, the deal I made with the universe when I was born.
The idea of punishment is too patriarchal, to Newtonian, and not very interesting to me.
The idea that I am being invited all day long every day to listen and trust a deeper wisdom within me makes me feel loved and cared for. If I choose to ignore this love and wisdom that is always there for me, then something is going to happen to help recalibrate me. This isn’t because the Universe is vengeful and punishing; this is because if you live off key your life will reflect your not being in tune.
I started the day. I almost sliced off the meat of my thumb not being able to get in touch with appreciation and gratitude. My life is rich in all ways, and if I’m not able to feel gratitude, I’m definitely out of alignment with the truth of my life.
After I sliced into my thumb, blood all over my kitchen and my bathroom and a bank, I was deeply in touch with Gratitude. I will probably have a scar on my thumb, a scar most likely I will not be able to see. I hope I will be able to feel it. I hope when I feel the little 1 inch scar on my thumb, I will feel gratitude and remember to listen.
Listen or bleed. This is not a warning, it’s an invitation.
Blessings,
Vicki
P.S. Uncle! The spammers have found me! I have had to discontinue allowing comments on this blog because I’ve been getting up to thirty comments a day from spammers. I do want to know what you are thinking about these articles, so please email me at vicki@outrageousvisions.com.