Ever see red when you were angry? Were you able to see anything else?

In the Goal Achievement and Spirituality article, I talked about the monkey and the nut with reference to non-attachment. The story can be used to illustrate openness as well.

Consider this. You may have closed your “fist” in an effort to protect yourself from harm. Maybe you were guarding your heart or your pride. A funny thing happened. While you were busy guarding yourself from outside harm, you were also preventing yourself from experiencing joy. When you open up you run the risk of being hurt. Unless you open up, you won’t experience the happiness for which you are searching.

The question remains, how do I stay open without experiencing pain?

Imagine that you are using your two hands to cup a butterfly. You feel it fluttering around gently inside. Now, someone from outside starts pouring sand on your hands. In an effort to shield the butterfly from the bristle of the sand you close your hands around the butterfly tighter. After a moment, you realize that if you close any tighter, you will crush the butterfly. If you open you hands just a bit, the sand will flow in and smother it. So you open up your hands and the butterfly flies off. You still feel the sand. After a few minutes the person stops pouring sand and an interesting thing happens. A few more butterflies fly by and one comes to rest on your hand.

The pain will stop eventually. When you remain open, you invite joy, harmony, and happiness into your life. These elements will be crushed if they are held tightly. They are meant to move freely in the Universe. Instead of trying to shield yourself from the bad, be open to the good in your life.