The Diamond

They say that cats have nine lives. Well, the diamond you’re about to get to know has at least two. Note for fact-checkers: It could’ve been a diamond engagement ring, but I think it was just the diamond itself (definitely to be used in an engagement ring, though). It’s been a little while since the session, and I just had “diamond” in my notes. When I don’t write these stories up right away, I can forget the details. The essence always remains, though, which is the main thing. On to the story…

I had an awesome session with a client a while back, and she told me about how she had taken this diamond to work, maybe to show her co-workers. She was engaged and excited, rightfully so. So she was about to leave work and was at her car when she realized there was no diamond. And what did she do? She freaked out! As most people would do under the circumstances… She spent a full hour retracing her steps, trying to find this very valuable diamond. She might’ve had others like the security guard involved as well. It was an intense situation. After an hour, she finally retraced her steps back to her office. And where was the diamond? It was sitting safely on her desk, exactly where she had last placed it. Although this might’ve taken a few years off of her life, the diamond was totally safe.

One life down, one to go. My client’s partner had the diamond and was traveling on the interstate in her car. Road trip! Her brother was traveling as well, and they happened to be crossing paths on the same interstate. They stopped at a random exit and met in a random gas station or truck stop parking lot. Of course she showed her brother the diamond, and after they were done visiting, they continued on their separate ways, driving in opposite directions.

Three hours down the road, she looked for the diamond. It was not in the bag that it was supposed to be in. The bag was empty. What?!? Long story short, she drove back three hours to the same random exit and the same random parking lot. Three hours! And where was the diamond? Right there on the pavement where they had been visiting. Although this might’ve taken a few years off of her life, the diamond was totally safe. Actually, that three hour car ride might’ve taken a few decades off of her life! Talk about practicing A Clean Mind… I’d love to meet this woman someday to ask about those three hours.

What a story. So what’s the lesson? In the session, my client and I had broken it down pretty hard in terms of spirituality, since that was her orientation. It was a very cool session for me. That’s what I really love to talk about. She caught me at a pretty powerful time, too, just a few days after discovering my latest treasure, the Way of Mastery material, which sure seems like a life-long path. I’ll be writing extensively about that when I start my next blog, A Deep Mind.

Back to the diamond… It immediately reminded me of a story I learned from a teacher named Gangaji who was instrumental in my life around 2006. It’s at the beginning of her excellent book, The Diamond In Your Pocket. The story is this: “A master thief waited his whole life to acquire the most beautiful diamond in the world. When he heard it had been purchased, he spent three days trying to steal the rare jewel. He failed. Finally, the thief walked right up to the owner and asked, ‘How did you hide this precious jewel from me?’ To which the owner replied, ‘I placed it where I knew you would never look-in your own pocket!’

This story doesn’t fit the real-life tale exactly, but rather in a general way. What does the diamond represent? Spirit, which is your true essence. That’s who you really are. That’s what animates the body that you see in the mirror. And that’s what cannot be born or die. That’s why I don’t believe in death. The body dies, but there’s way too much evidence out there that says we are simply not a body. And that’s good news. Very good news! I’ll talk about that extensively at A Deep Mind as well, explaining what I’ve called “evidence.” Come to think of it, we’ll talk about it some here, too, probably in the near future. I got licensed (LCSW) a few weeks ago, and I’ll be moving into a new office on my own in beautiful, historic downtown Pensacola starting November 1. That’s when I can let it fly more.

So the diamond was fine all along. We think we can lose it, but we can’t. We think it can be harmed, but it can’t. Leave it on your desk at work? It’s fine. Leave it on the ground in a random truck stop parking lot and drive for three hours and then three hours back to find it? It’s fine. Of course, I’m not recommending that you leave your diamond or diamond ring wherever you want. If something happens, then please don’t blame me…

I think this analogy of the diamond being Spirit, or who you really are after all is said and done, is 100% accurate. I’ve looked around too much and seen too much of what I consider to be evidence. When there’s more evidence to the contrary, I’ll gladly change my belief; I’ll have no choice. I go where the evidence is, with as little baggage as possible. And I look forward to talking with you more about that very soon.