Yesterday I attended a free seminar, “Overcoming Your Fear of Success” offered by Jeff Rahim Bronner from The University of Spiritual Healing and Sufism.  As you can imagine, I was attracted to this seminar because of the assumption that the only thing holding me back from my success, was my fear which meant that I could be successful! I’ve been exposed to Sufism, once in a month long class studying music and dance a long time ago (I loved the dancing!) and then through Nelin Hudani who hosts “The Heartfelt Conversations” group. 

Being attracted to Sufi Healing is an interesting situation for me to be in since my husband is Jewish and was born in Israel, my father is an ex-US military diplomat, and I’ve grown up Episcopalian, attended a Baptist Boarding School and have studied the Self Realization Fellowship for many years.  Now with all the controversary surrounding the Muslim and Islamic worlds, here I am exploring them.  So far my experience has been one of love and healing. I am not exploring the political ramifications though I acknowledge that these surely are being affected.  It seems to me that it is good for me, you, us to explore and listen for the commonality in each other’s ways.

Sometime in the Fall, a book about the “Amazing Faiths in Texas” will be published.  Michael Blair (GSD&M) has spent the past several months going all over Texas interviewing people from all kinds of background, faiths, religions and beliefs.  What he has discovered is the commonality, when all is said and done, about how people feel about God–no matter the course they took to get to God.  Finding the similarities instead of the differences is what it is all about. Finding out where we can all connect and talk and listen to each other is what it is all about.

I believe that today, you can begin this process with yourself and the people you come in contact with such as your family or friends or acquaintenances.  You can decide to be willing to hear with a different ear and speak with a different voice.  You can be willing to find the connection between one soul to another by letting go of the control of the outcome of your interaction (yep, I know, this is easier said than done!), but if not now, then when?

Try it. Let me hear from you on your journey.  It is a good life afterall, if we allow it to be.