There’s a reality show on television where a family who are
in dire need of a new home but can’t afford it are sent to Disneyland or some
other fun location for a couple of weeks while a whole massive crew of people
tear down their old house and build them a new one. When they return a huge bus is parked in
front of the new house when they drive up.
Then, to the shouts of “Move that bus!” from the crowd of helpers, the
bus slowly drives away leaving the family shocked and delighted at their first
view of their brand new home. Corny but
effective!
Just lately I’ve been concerned with an issue in my
life. Yes, let’s call it like it is…..I
had a problem. I had tried every way I
knew to fix this problem and in between my unsuccessful efforts, I felt
overwhelmed and defeated.
The more I tried to fix the problem, the bigger it seemed to
get. Pretty soon it was huge and was
taking up so much space in my brain and so much of my time it seemed to be the
only thing my life was about.
Then one day, that phrase came into my mind……”Move that bus!”……and
I realized that it wasn’t my problem that was my problem. It was the fact that I was staring at the
problem day in and day out. I was
staring at the bus instead of moving it.
I wasn’t seeing the solution because I was focusing on the problem. I had no idea what might be hiding behind my
problem.
I needed to “Move that bus!”
When I came to this conclusion, I knew what I had to do but
I had no idea what would happen if I did.
I needed to let the problem itself move out of my focus leaving room for
whatever solution presented itself or whatever action I needed to take.
I sat quietly and closed my eyes. I visualized my huge “bus” and on the side I
saw in big letters, my problem spelled out.
Then I silently chanted to myself “Move that bus!” and I climbed into
the driver’s seat.
When the bus was moved out of the way, I climbed down and
went back to my original place. I looked
to see what was there. It wasn’t a new
house! But it was a beautiful view of
mountains and blue sky and sunshine. I
felt lighter. I felt less anxious. I felt happier.
In time, a workable solution did present itself for the
issue but I know that just getting my focus off the problem made enough space
to allow that solution to eventually appear.
The problem shrank to its true size and I was able to resume my life
even without an immediate result. I felt
less anxious and even had a sense of peace.
If you have a problem that seems to be getting bigger and
bigger and taking up all of your thinking and your time, try seeing it as a big
bus. Write the problem on the side, then
drive it out of your awareness. Enjoy
the feeling of peace and relief you get and trust that the solution will show
up. If nature abhors a vacuum then the
space left by the bus must be filled. Be
open to the light and understanding that will flow in after you…..
“Move that bus!”