There's a Whole in the Sky

One evening, Luna had a conversation with Red Eagle. He was sitting in a worn camp chair, in solitude under the stars.
“Grandpa, can I sit with you?” Luna asked.
He slowly nodded his head, grinning slightly.
“Grandpa, I noticed that every hardship and every snag in our schedule when we are on the road seems to work out okay. People help us fix the van and give us shelter or food. Sometimes we never get to the scheduled lecture but it never seems to upset you. You just laugh and stay calm. Many times were tough. Having a road washed out after a flash flood, and having to turn around and miss the lecture, a tree falling across the road during a severe thunderstorm and having our camping equipment blown away from high winds during a tornado. It’s hard being on the road. It can make you weary and depleted. Why do you continue at your age when it’s so hard?” she asked.
Red Eagle just sat there in silence for a moment and his face became serious as he spoke.
“Life is not hard. Life is life. Life is how you see it. The Great Spirit’s hand flows through all of it. The road washing out let us turn around and meet an old man whose wife needed our medicine salve for her ulcerated leg. Spirit led us to her. The downed tree gave us wood for the fire for a ceremony that helped the little boy with a stomach illness. The wind took our camping equipment so that we could be given new equipment by that young couple who had extra and in better condition. It is all in how you see the big picture. We get what is needed. If we are in the flow, Spirit will guide us to where we are needed. My mission is to serve Spirit and to go to where that takes me.”
He added, “We are here to help and share with each other. How you live and use the time should not be wasted. Your mind and heart need to be in balance to live a good life. The ego’s wants make us unhappy and out of balance. Take and use only what you need to live on, and no more. More than that is wasteful. Having a grateful attitude for everything in your life keeps you in balance as an earth person.”
After that night, Luna observed the road and life with more gratitude and excitement. If she remembered to embrace life as a gift, it was no longer hard, a struggle or disappointing.
Red Eagle’s next teaching came before her two day, two night quest. Luna was worried about fasting. Red Eagle offered his wisdom.
“The Great Spirit requires us to sacrifice, to give of ourselves and of our time but it is only you who can choose to suffer. Suffering is not needed or asked of us by Spirit. You don’t need to suffer to heal.”
This teaching allowed Luna to experience the quest with a new perspective. She did not have to struggle. She had prepared well, and now she had to let Great Spirit take care of the rest.