The Swing

So it was one of those ‘question when and question how and question why’ days. Faith had become a textbook term collecting dust on the shelf. Yet, the Lord still managed to shower a sprinkle of understanding on the unwilling mind that held a know-it-all attitude, as it browsed a random book.

Think of a swing. Children love to swing. There is nothing like it. Thrusting your feet toward the sky … spinning trees. As children, we only trusted certain people to push our swing. If I were being pushed by people I trusted (like mom or dad), they could do anything they wanted. Twist me, turn me, stop me … I loved it! I loved it because I trusted the person pushing me. They wanted my safety before I even knew what safety was. I was relaxed and carefree. (The parents among us must know this experience!) But let a stranger push my swing – like distant relatives or guests, and it was like “hang on!” Who knew what this newcomer would do? When a stranger pushes your swing, you tense up. It is no fun when the swing is in the hands of someone you do not know.

We may live in a stormy world. But who is pushing our swing? We must put our trust in Him. We cannot grow fearful or doubtful. When we are in His hands, we will find peace even in a storm … because He is pushing our swing! With the swing of our lives in His hands, we still question. He sees our life from beginning to end. We should let Him swing us. He may lead us through a storm at age thirty so we can endure a hurricane at age fifty.

Are we the ones who know that there is only One who is in control of everything? Or are we the ‘manager of the world’ types where we secretly think that even a day without us would cause havoc to some? Which is an easier type to live by? Which type helps us in our meditation? We understand that a shift in attitude is not a day’s job, but if we persistently try, reminding ourselves, we will be able to let go much more – and slowly but surely, we will also flow with that current that runs through life.

An instrument is only useful if it is in the right shape. A dull axe or a bent screwdriver needs attention, and so do we. A good blacksmith keeps his tools in shape. So does He. A silversmith was asked, “How do you know when the silver is pure?” He replied, “When I see my own reflection in it.” Should He place us on His instruments desk, we should be grateful. It means that He is thinking of us! It means that He thinks we are still worth reshaping!

We can learn from Baba Jaimal Singh, in one of his letters to Great Master, as quoted in Spiritual Letters:

Surrender yourself, my son. All that exists – the inner faculties of surat and nirat, the gross mind, the higher mind, the vital energy, the physical body, etc. – do not let your mind desire any of these. Nor should you concern yourself with what will happen next, or how you will do it. Put aside all such anxieties. All your possessions were given to you in the beginning by the Satguru, so they should have been held in trust. They were never to be regarded as your own … So surrender yourself and step aside, my son. Consider that each and every thing in the world – body, mind and wealth – belongs to the Satguru, that you are nothing. Do all your work knowing it to be thus, and stay within Satguru’s instructions. He will then take you with him when he considers you fit.