As her story goes, she was working in the Peace Corp overseas.  Six months before she was due to finish the tour, she decided she wanted to go back to school for a graduate degree, specifically New York University (NYU).  She didn’t know how she was going to pay for it nor did she know where she was going to live.

One day, she found an article in an African magazine that was written by the Dean of this school.   She felt the urge to write him a letter and tell him of her intentions.  He wrote back and encouraged her to apply.

Sometime after that, she was in New York City for a tour of the school.  At one point, she was in the Dean’s office, talking with the very same person who previously corresponded with her.   In less than an hour, he signed some forms giving her a scholarship for the first year, using funds from a discretionary account!

She meandered down the hall, most likely in a daze, and found herself at the Creative Arts Team, a non-profit supported by NYU.   She ended up landing a part-time job with them – we all know what that means.  Most schools offer free tuition to full and part time employees!

Wait, there’s more.

Before the day was over, she was at the Housing Division where she was offered free room and board in a private home in exchange for a few hours of babysitting on the weekends!

Let’s see here…….What just happened?

She made a decision to go back to school, not knowing how she’d pay for it or where she’d live.  Then in the course of one day while touring NYU:

• her first year’s tuition was fully paid for
• she got a part-time job which meant she’d continue to get free tuition
• she was offered free room and board in a private home in exchange for babysitting on the weekends

As she tells it, she now has a masters degree from NYU and did not have to pay one penny – OMG!!!!

Her comment set off an explosion of renewed desire to not give up my pursuit of higher education.   It also inspired me to write a new article here, the first I’ve written in over a month.   She reminded me that when spirit places a strong desire in your heart, it doesn’t matter what’s happening in the world, the economy or whatever that’s going on.

Now, it’s my turn – I owe you an update.

Please get yourself a cup of coffee, a glass of wine or whatever it is you like to drink because it’s going to be one very looooooong update.

Last month, I informed this community of my desire to return to higher education and asked for help.  At that time, I had my eyes set at the University of Santa Monica (USM), a school that was offering master’s and doctoral degrees in spiritual psychology, a subject I immediately felt was right for me.  I was also looking at the Maharishi School of Management in Iowa.   Both felt right to me.

There were several challenges with USM.  First of all, the school was not accredited on the national level, which meant I could not apply for federal grants, scholarships and/or loans.  They offered classes once a month, on the weekends – unless I moved there (unlikely), I would have to commute from one end of the country to the other like the majority of students who fly in from around the world every month.

Needless to say, I had no idea how I was going to pay for lodging, meals, books, tuition, airfare, etc.  That could easily run into the thousands every single month!

Gosh!  The enormity of the situation!

But since the desire to return to school was so strong, I knew God must have put it in my heart.    I proceeded to put it out there via this blog.  I asked the community for financial assistance and set up a Paypal button and then waited.

Interestingly enough, despite the strong nudge from within, the results were not what I expected.   I thought to myself, “Okay, maybe this isn’t what the universe had in mind for me.”    Perhaps I was barking up the wrong tree here.   I took a deep breath, said some prayers and made a personal vow to keep an open mind.   I had a feeling the universe had something up its sleeve so I waited for the next sign.

A short time later, I received an email that would set in motion a flurry of incredible events that I could never have foreseen but interestingly enough, it would turn out not to end up the way I thought it would.  Hang on…..there’s more coming.

The email was an innocent note from a family member with a long list of questions about why I picked USM for graduate school.    Were they accredited?  Why commute every single month – aren’t there other schools offering the same program?    Etc. Etc. Etc.

Las Vegas Keynote Speech

At that time, I was preparing for a speaking engagement in Las Vegas and told him I’d respond when I got back.   One morning after returning from the trip, I felt this overwhelming urge to respond to his email.  My fingers were absolutely flying on that keyboard – it was like the Hoover Dam was bursting with ideas!

As i was typing away, it occurred to me that I should mention I was looking for a live-in situation similar to the one I once had when I lived with a woman during the summer of 2005.  She had a bad back and was looking for someone to help her around the house in exchange for free room and board.  Since I had never done that before, I took her up on it and for the most part, it worked out rather well.  I ended up saving quite a bit of money that summer too.    I indicated that if I were to find something similiar, I’d be able to attend USM.

The following morning, I received an urgent phone call from this family member who proceeded to tell me that not only was he and his wife looking for live-in help but she had serendipitously mentioned over dinner one night:  “It’s too bad none of our family members are available to help.”

I  was floored – I had NO idea!

What’s even more tantalizing is that six months prior (October 2008), I had told my landlord that I wanted to renew the lease for only six months instead of the customary twelve.  I had a feeling I would be moving come April 2009 but didn’t know why.   Fortunately I listened to my intuition and convinced them to give me a six month lease.

In summary, take a look at this wondrous string of events that I could never have predicted:

• signed a six month lease set to expire April 2009, not knowing why
• strong commitment to return to school hit me around the first of this year (2009)
• via online research, I found USM, Maharishi University and other schools that appealed to me
• told family and friends what I was hoping to do
• received an email from a family  member asking why I wanted to attend USM
• received burning desire to respond to his email after returning from a trip
• discovered that this particular family member was in the process of interviewing live-in applicants – exactly what I was looking for!

Oh my God, what was happening?

We immediately began negotiating on how this live-in arrangement would work.  Every major obstacle/concern that came up during the almost-daily conversations was easily and effortlessly resolved.

As you can see in the picture to the left, they have a huge house so plenty of work to do around there.  I’d live in the 5th bedroom in the finished basement.

So far, so good.

The closer we got to the end of March, the more confident I felt at the way things were going.    In fact, the negotiations were going so well that I felt strong enough to put down a deposit for the Fall class at USM.   I figured since things were progressing smoothly, it was a message from the universe that I should stop looking at other schools and notify the apartment manager of my intentions to move out at the end of April.

Suddenly out of the blue, the negotiations took a sharp detour, completely throwing me off.   At first I was asked if I could postpone the move to end of May instead of April.    Then a day went by, then another and another.   I was told in a brief email to “hang in there.”   I knew he and his spouse were working out the details of the arrangement.

A whole week flew by without hearing from them.   The longer I waited, the more my heart sank.   Somehow I knew what the final verdict would be.

On March 30th, I received word that the deal was off.

I was crestfallen but not surprised.  Why did this happen?  What was the meaning of all this?  How could everything have been working out so smoothly and with seemingly divine timing only to fall apart at the seams?   What was the universe trying to tell me?

I was puzzled.   Befuddled.   Confused.   In a daze.

Then fear, worry and concern began to set in.

• “I just put down a deposit to reserve a seat for the Fall 09 class – should I get it back now?”
• “I’d have to fork over more money to pay the application fee – should I continue to apply and have faith?  Or should I put a stop to all of this?’
• “How am I going to afford the monthly commutes to and from Los Angeles now that this live-in thing fell apart?”

While fear-based thoughts were swirling around in my head, I remembered someone once told me, “When one door closes, another opens.”  I took a deep breath and called USM to cancel my application.

A day or two later, a new door opened.

You guys know from an earlier post last month that while I was looking into USM, I also had my eye on the Maharishi University of Management in Iowa.   Because of the way things were unfolding with respect to USM, I really thought that was where the spirit was guiding me towards.    But I guess not.

Unlike USM, Maharishi is a full-time, fully accredited institution, which means I can apply for federal grants, loans and scholarships.   It’s also a unique place that requires everyone in the school to learn and practice Transcendental Mediation.

About a week after the negotiations fell apart, I applied for and received a travel scholarship from Maharishi to visit their campus during “Visitor’s Weekend’ (end of April).   All of my expenses will be paid for.  They’re even providing me with an interpreter so I don’t miss out on anything!

When one door closes, another opens.

Well, my friends, I have no idea what will happen next.   I have no idea whether I gave up too soon on USM or if canceling my application was the right thing to do.  I have no idea whether Maharishi is the right school for me or not but I’m sure to find out when I explore the campus during Visitor’s Weekend!

All I know is that the universe put in my heart the desire to return to school for a graduate degree and I’m being led on this mysterious path that continues to unfold in the strangest and most unexpected ways.

I am not giving up.

When one door closes, another opens.

Note:  To see Lisa’s beautiful story about her NYU graduate school dreams, go here.

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What’s the point of life if you aren’t willing to play and take chances like making last minute, seemingly irrational decisions and fly off somewhere because your intuition told you to do so?

I just got back from spending an incredible week in London and I’m about to tell you all about it.   London was a place I had never before been to and is a place I know I will be visiting more and more frequently in the future.  Heck, I might even move there!   No, I’m not kidding.

As I sit here at 4:45 am writing this post (9:45 am London time), I am drinking my first green smoothie in a week (blended 2 fistfuls of kale, one peeled banana, 8 oz. water, fistful of frozen berries and 1 whole sliced apple – kale has a strong, bitter taste for the early raw foodist so throwing in berries and an apple made it sweeter).

While driving myself home from the airport yesterday, I found myself marveling at how everything fell into place so incredibly easily and effortlessly.    That can only lead me to believe this trip was divinely ordained.   How could it not be?

This is going to be one very long post with a some pictures so please sit back with your favorite cup of tea or coffee and enjoy!  I’m going to take you through the entire process, from the moment the idea was conceived to the very end.   Perhaps while you’re reading, you’ll gain some insights for your own life.   At the very least, you’ll vicariously experience London through this post.

The whole thing started a week before my October 29/30th Frito-Lay speaking engagement in Dallas.  One day, I was driving around town, running a bunch of local errands when I was suddenly hit with this thought:   It’s time to go to London.

Whoa, where did that come from?

Actually, to be honest with you, I had been in communications with a guy named Matt Monarch,  a well known raw foodist living in London with his girlfriend, Angela Stokes (also a raw foodist with an inspiring weight loss story of her own).   I had ordered some books from him at Raw Food World after which he sent a personalized reply thanking me for the order.   That impressed me and soon we were emailing back and forth.

As I was out running errands that one day, I was thinking about my conversations with Matt when the idea to go to London took hold.   It seemed irrational, coming out of nowhere yet it felt “right.”   At first I thought it was because of my correspondences with Matt but the more I thought about it, the more I realized God was reminding me to visit someone I knew more personally who also lived in London.

His name is Mike, who I had hosted while he was here visiting the states for a week twelve years ago.  His parting words were, “Whenever you want to come to London, come and stay with me, okay?”

While Matt was generous enough to let me stay with him and Angela the entire week, I felt much more comfortable crashing at Mike’s place since I knew him better.   So I contacted him and said I was hoping to come to London the first week of November and wanted to know if he was free.   That’s when the first of several so called “coincidences” began to show up.

His reply literally made me fall off my chair.   “Guess what?” he said.  “I’m off work that week – come on over – you can stay with me as long as you like!”

Arrangements were immediately made to book myself a flight to and from London but because it was so close to the desired departure date, available seats were priced astronomically high (between $1,000 – $4,000 for economy seats!).

A full day of searching online ended in frustration on a Saturday (about 1 week before the departure date).   The following Sunday morning, I decided I would give it another try and look once more.   If I found a flight for a reasonable round trip airfare, I’d book it, even if it meant driving to Detroit (or some other central hub) to catch myself a plane.

Boarding Passes from Detroit to Paris to London on Air France (partners with Northwest Airlines)

The second of many blessings came when I finally found a seat on Air France for $765 RT.   Even though I’d have to drive 3 hours to the airport and then fly to Paris for a 5 hour layover, I booked it on the spot.   I knew a good deal when I saw one.  I also couldn’t believe I was doing this at the last minute.

Whooo – what exhilaration!

As soon as I booked and confirmed everything, I realized that because the outgoing flight on Air France wasn’t going to be until later in the evening on Sunday (November 2nd), that would give me time to reconnect with old friends.

While I have many friends in Michigan, I was only able to visit with just 3 of them due to severe time constraints and the fact that they lived relatively close to Detroit Metro airport.

I packed only two bags for the trip.   One thing I’ve learned over the years was not to over pack regardless of where I was going.    That’s because I want to avoid checking my luggage, preferring instead to stow them in overhead bins.  That way I reduce the chances of  my luggage getting lost along the way, especially if there was a connecting flight involved.   The only thing I needed to remember was to pack enough warm clothes as London was reportedly cold, damp and windy at this time of the year.    It turned out that I packed rather well because I had all the warm clothes I needed!

On the day of departure, I met with 3 friends in quick succession.  The first was an old pilot friend, Jason and his wife.   He and I used to fly together when we were working at Troy Oakland airport in early 2000.   The second was my good friends John and Michael who have been partners for 12 years living in Royal Oak.  They provided a nice lunch including a ham and cheese sandwich, the first of its kind since beginning my raw food journey in September 2008.   The third was Jim, who I had befriended through a church I was attending while living in Michigan.    It was awesome to see them all.

Since I had to be at the airport at least 3 hours before departure, I had to cut my last visit with Jim short and head straight for the airport.    Finding parking, going through the check-in and security procedures all went smoothly, representing yet another series of “easy and effortless” events that would continue to unfold throughout the rest of the trip.

Flying on Air France to Paris was a hoot.  The plane was booked solid – just about every seat in the economy section was filled.   It was the first time I had seen movie screens on the back of the seats so that was fun to play with.   Although my aisle seat was comfortable and my neighbor was thankfully not a screaming child or someone proportionally out of shape, I could not manage to sleep on the red eye flight.    We departed just before 7 pm and landed in Paris 7 hours later, the next day.   Even though I was wired, I was very tired.

Paris Airport

After landing in Paris, I was surprised I had to go through yet another screening process even though I had just gotten off a flight and never left the building.   I went through it without a problem except when a Paris custom official asked me if I had any liquids inside my luggage.  Due to his accent, I misunderstood him and said that I didn’t.   He asked me to step aside and that’s when the question was repeated.   Suddenly, I understood he was probably talking about the “bathroom bag” where I had stored things like toothpaste, a small bottle of eyeglass cleaner, mouthwash, soap, etc.   The grim faced official said to make sure I took that bag out every time I went through the screening process.   With a weary smile, I said, ‘Yes, sir, thanks.”

Tired but wired and roaming around the Paris Intl Terminal

Then it was 5 hours of roaming around the  Paris terminal, waiting for the next flight to London.  Thankfully I brought with me gogi berries (a raw food superfood – they look like red raisins), cacao beans (raw chocolate, bitter tasting but great when combined with gogi berries), a few bananas, an apple and a bag of Kashi granola cereal.  That kept my stomach happy for a while!

Since one of my pieces of luggage had wheels on it, I was able to glide about the terminal, killing 5 hours of time.    Even though I was dead tired, my eyes were wide awake, absorbing the sights, sounds and smells of the Paris terminal.    Watching people in an airport is a quite a bit of fun because you learn so much just by observing people making their way to countless destinations.

Welcome to Heathrow!

Finally, it was time to board the flight to London for the last leg.  The flight was only an hour.  My London host, Mike, greeted me outside customs with a hastily made signage he made while waiting.  A paper plate was taped to some sort of stick (I think it was a pen or something) with my  name “Stephen Hopson” on it.   I thought it was the cutest thing anyone had ever done for me.  It was funny to see him waiving it like a limo driver trying to catch someone’s attention.   The moment I saw Mike, my bleary eyes gave way to rivers of tears, relieved to see a familiar face in a foreign land.

I had finally made it to London!

That’s when the adventures began.  After snapping a photo of me by the Heathrow sign, we entered the tube (which means subway in America) for the first time in my life.

Mike, my host in London, in the tube on the way to his flat. (Doesn't he look like someone born and raised in London?

Riding the tube instantly brought back memories of when I was living in New York City.   What fascinated me was how the people dressed themselves.   Most of them were stylishly dressed with scarfs wrapped around their necks, long/short black overcoats and sneakers (or black boots), etc.

The ride in the tube took about an hour to Mike’s flat (apartment).   Coming out onto the streets was an event in of itself.   A ton of people were rushing around often with worry and anxiety written all over their faces.    Even Mike walked fast – I practically had to run to keep up with him!

One thing I learned very quickly was to look the other way when crossing the streets because the flow of traffic was the reverse of America’s.   Instead of looking to your left and then right when crossing, I had to remember to do the opposite.  I had a couple of tantalizing close calls because I looked in the wrong direction.  Crossing the streets of London is definitely a hazard for the first time visitor!

Front Entrance to Mike's flat

Mike’s flat was nestled among similar-looking buildings that lined the street, very much what I imagined it’d be from watching all those James Bond movies.   Stepping inside, I was greeted with two cute little dogs that took to a liking to me within an  hour.   This was the flat I would call home for the next week.

As you can imagine, I slept soundly that night.  My bed was a large, comfortable couch.    Despite the 5 hour difference, my body adjusted rather well.   Believe it or not, I suffered no jet lag.   Now, don’t get me wrong, I did feel a little sleepy at times throughout the early days but otherwise felt great.  Not once did I want to take a nap and “catch up.”

First green smoothie in London (spinach, apple, banana, water, orange, tomato, ice, etc.)

The following morning I had my first green smoothie, using Mike’s blender.   Mike took an immediate interest in my raw food journey and we went shopping for fruits and vegetables my first night there.

The following morning I showed him how to make a green smoothie.   Unfortunately, his blender took a turn for the worst and burned out two days later because it couldn’t handle the load we were putting in it.  We managed to make green smoothies on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings before it petered out.  Mike is now looking into getting the UK version of the Vita-Mix blender.

We hit the ground running with Mike serving as my gracious host, taking me all over Central London for a week of sightseeing.

Buckingham Palace - what a sight!

I’m telling you, it was absolutely awesome to finally see the Buckingham Palace with my own eyes, watch a parade of colorfully decorated horses and their riders pass by and visit several famous landmarks including bridges, buildings and surviving castles.

We ate lunch/dinner at a handful of British restaurants and pubs and met with some of his friends.  We also got a private bus tour of the site of the 2012 Olympics.  As you can imagine, security was extremely tight – we were not allowed to walk around – we had to stay in the van the entire time.

Every single day we were out hitting the pavement so much that I hardly needed to workout even though I was prepared to do just that.   Now that I’m back to America, I plan to hit the gym beginning tomorrow (Thursday) after my mind gets acclimated to the 5 hour time difference.

You remember earlier when I said this trip to London was first precipitated by a conversation I had with Matt Monarch, the raw foodist living in the UK?    Well, even though I decided not to stay with them the whole week, we did make plans for me to meet them on Thursday night.   That required a 20 minute journey on the underground tube followed by a one hour train ride to Brighton.  By that point, I had thoroughly traveled throughout most of Central London with Mike showing me the way that I felt comfortable going out on my own, giving him a well deserved night alone at his flat.

Except for missing a turn (I walked from the Brighton train station to their house at night), I eventually found my way to the correct residence.  Meeting both Matt and Angela was an interesting experience after reading much about them.

Matt was an in-shape MTV hotshot who ate the typical Standard American Diet (SAD) consisting mostly of fast food and other junk.   He went raw 100 percent overnight (not something that is generally recommended but that’s his story) while Angela, on the other hand, lost half of her body weight on raw food (lost 160 pounds).   While Matt went raw overnight, she went raw gradually.

Matt Monarch and Angela Stokes in Brighton, UK

One thing I noticed about them was how their eyes and faces glowed.    They were the first 100 percent raw foodists I had ever met – it was hard not to notice that about them.     Both were gracious to spend quality time with me, catching up on things in our lives, including the latest in the raw food world.

At one point, Matt invited me to do an exercise with him which turned into a life transforming experience.  Facing each other on the couch, he instructed me to stare at his eyes for the longest possible time without talking.

So there we were, staring into each other’s eyes for what seemed like 20, maybe 30 minutes.   Then something freaky began to happen, making the hair on my neck stand straight up.

Matt’s face began to take on the image of someone else entirely.   I was like Holy Moley!  His eyes became darker while the rest of his face metamorphosed into the face of a very old Indian man!!!    It was both scary and exhilarating at the same time.

Matt broke the silence by asking what I had just seen.   After describing the Indian image, it was his turn to tell me what he had seen while looking into my eyes.   He had seen different colors around my head, including green, yellow, orange and I think red.    I’m not sure what, if anything, those colors meant but it was interesting nonetheless.   Several years ago I had done a similiar exercise during a Landmark Education course in New York City.   The purpose was to allow ourselves to express unconditional love for the person whose eyes I was looking into.   It was like looking into that person’s soul.

The London Tube (subway) system

I slept on the couch and left to go back to Mike’s flat the following morning.  I felt like a regular “Londoner,” expertly navigating my way around the tube system.  Of course, it helps that I used to work and live in New York City (16 years) with a subway system of their own.

Friday night Mike and I went to a party at a local pub where I had a chance to meet more of his friends.  It was like an International gathering of sorts because I wasn’t the only foreigner there that evening.  Many of them were not originally born and raised in London.   One of the people I became instant friends with was Dani, a teacher for the deaf in London, who was born and raised in South Africa.    I never felt so warmly embraced and welcomed the way I was that night!

Posing with the British Cops after the workshop.

Before I forget to tell you, Mike and I were offered an opportunity to participate in a workshop that David, one of his friends, was doing for the British police force.   David (far left in the photo), asked us if we’d be willing to role play with the British cops in a couple of exercises, the purpose of which was to raise awareness among the cops on how different deaf people communicate.

Mike was invited because he’s a profoundly deaf British man whose communication is at a different level from mine.  I was used because I was from America using an altogether different way of communication (mostly oral, using my voice).

To maintain the surprise, David instructed me to remain silent throughout the workshop until it was time to do my part.  He didn’t want the cops to know how well I spoke until it was my turn to role play.   You should have seen the surprise register on their faces – it was a hoot!

At the end of the workshop, I engaged in a terrific conversation with a young, pretty African American British detective (far right side in the first row) who role played with me earlier.  I learned that some members of her families were living in Brooklyn, New York and that it was her desire to join them with a new career in forensic science.    Let’s send her silent blessings, shall we?

By the way, while we were waiting to go inside the police building for that workshop, Mike and I hung out by the gates, waiting for David to meet us.   Unbeknownst to us, while we were waiting for him, we were also being watched by the British police from inside the headquarters.  Apparently someone (perhaps the Inspector?) alerted a couple of deputies that two “suspicious looking” men were languishing outside the gates and gesturing to one another (possibly two terrorists sending signals to one another?  Whoohoo!!).

Shortly before one pm, two plainclothes policemen approached us with a smile and told us not to be alarmed but asked for our ID’s.   It took a full moment to register what was happening.   Both Mike and I told them that we were deaf and that we were waiting for David to retrieve us for lunch before going inside the building for a workshop.

Just as I pulled out my passport, David came sauntering through the security gates, completely unaware of what was happening.  I immediately told the questioning policeman that the man we were waiting for had just walked out to get us for lunch.   It was a good thing I had my passport on me because I had actually considered leaving it back at Mike’s flat before changing my mind.  I remember thinking, “You never know.”

After the cops realized we were harmless, we all shook hands and went separate ways, us to lunch and them back inside the police building.   Even though I was calm throughout the process, I did feel slight aftershock tremors.   What an experience, let me tell you!

After lunch, the three of us returned to the police headquarters and signed in at the security desk.  Just as I signed my name on the guest log, guess who came bounding down the stairs?

The cop who had earlier questioned me!

And take a wild guess at what his name was.  Just one guess.

That’s right, it was Stephen!

Go figure.

All in all, it was a fabulous trip and I know I’ll be visiting London again very soon.   It was a most amazing experience and goes to show that you don’t have to plan everything to the last detail for a trip.   Somehow I brought the right clothes and had the right amount of money on me (British currency).  Except for the few near misses while crossing the streets, things could not have gone better.

If you’re interested in seeing the rest of the photos, you can find them over at my Facebook profile.  Simply look for the London 2008 albums (there are two of them).

Let me leave you with 10 observations I made while in London:

1. It was a challenge to maintain my raw food lifestyle so I had to adapt and did the best I could – I would say 50 percent of my food intake was raw food while the rest was cooked.   I made sure I did not beat myself up for that.  The key was to be as selective as possible under the circumstances and be okay with whatever choices I made.

2. The weather over there would not be suitable for those who get depressed easily – the entire time I was there, the sun only came out once or maybe twice.  It was overcast with intermittent rain, not to mention cold and damp.  But I did not mind at all.   I don’t even think that would bother me if I were to live there.

3. London people seem to lead a fast-paced life, similar to those in New York City.    Many of their faces appeared creased with frantic worry and hurry.   Everyone, even my host, Mike, was a fast walker.

4. The flats reminded me a lot of the apartments in New York City because they were tightly packed and wedged between buildings of all sizes.  Many of them have exceedingly small square footages.   Real estate prices were somewhat comparable to those in New York.

5. The streets were “curvy” – as they turned every which way, quite unlike those straight vertical and horizontal lines in New York.  Drivers sit in the right seat and drive their vehicles on the left side of the road (versus sitting in the left seat and driving on the left side of the road).  This took getting used to.

6. The dollar has been significantly weak against the British pound for quite some time so price-wise, I was at a disadvantage when paying for something because it was the equivalent of almost double in American money.  For example, if something cost me ten pounds, that meant twenty dollars.  I found myself subconsciously converting everything into American dollars every time I went to pay for something!

7. The British certainly know how to dress stylishly.  They have a distinctive look about them, making it easier to separate them from the tourists.    Although I think I blended in rather nicely (jeans, sneakers and a hooded sweatshirt), you could probably tell that I was an American (the camera hoisted on my belt was a dead giveaway).

8. Keeping track of what was what with British money was a huge challenge for it took me time to recognize the different sizes and shapes of the British coins.    It was hard to tell the difference between one pound coins and 50 pence (think pennies).  You would think the pound coin would be significantly larger than the 50 pence coin (since it’s more in value) but the opposite was true.  The 50 pence was larger than the one or two pound coins!

9. The British have different words to describe things like apartment (flat), subway (tube), check (bill) and gas (petrol).  These are the ones I remember at the moment but there were a lot more.

10. And finally, I would like to say without giving too many details that the end result of this trip has not only generated a load of new friends from around the world but it also created the possibility of a new business partnership.   More on that when things fall into place.   But before we go, let’s revisit the title of this blog post:

How Making an Irrational, Last Minute Decision Can Change Your Life

Did you think I did the title justice today?  You tell me!

Food for thought:  Taking risks and doing something as daring as making an unscheduled, last-minute trip can be quite exhilarating.

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This morning I was composing an email back to a subscriber named Barbara Ann Hartman who wrote, “……That will be an adventure for you, I know.  Are you thinking of moving elsewhere???”  She was referring to a string of latest updates here at Adversity University, some of which might lead me to an opportunity in another part of the country.

What was interesting about her question was that she wasn’t the first to ask me about this.   I don’t know about you, but I’ve lived in five different places in three states and one major metropolitan city since moving out of my boyhood home almost 30 years ago (Latham, New York).   As you might imagine, that calls for newly acquired skills every single time.

Thanks to the sense of independence my mother instilled in me, I am as independent as you can imagine.  While I don’t feel any pull to move anywhere at the moment, I do know that if I saw an exit for an opportunity and it felt right, I’m more than likely pulling myself up by the bootstraps and once again entering the highway of destiny and getting off at the opportunity exit.

Almost as soon as I graduated from high school in the late 70′s,  I moved to Poughkeepsie, NY for 4 years at Marist College (midway between Albany, NY and New York City).  I experienced what it was like to be homesick my first year but after that, I relished every moment away from home.  It was there I learned how to make my own decisions, structured my day the way I saw fit, became a student leader on campus (“Hopson Elected Lieutenant Governor“) and either succeeded or failed on my own dime.  It was a very interesting time of growth and learning. (Photo by Desolate Places)

The work ethic my father taught me as a youngster took root during those college years.  I rarely partied during the week, leaving that instead for the weekends.  Every time my roommate asked if I wanted to join a bunch of people for a joint or visit the Rathskeller, a bar in the basement of my dorm building, I’d invariably turn him down saying along the lines of, “I’ve got to do this term paper, maybe this weekend.”  That sense of commitment to my work would later prove invaluable during my future years on Wall Street.

Then I did something I never thought I’d do – moved to New York City where I lived and worked for 16 years (which was like the blink of an eye – VERY FAST).  (Photo:  gailatlarge.com)

After my spiritual revelation and quitting Wall Street in the late 1990′s, an opportunity came from Michigan to work on a book project that I thought would significantly enhance my newly chosen inspirational speaking career.   I packed all my belongings in a 10-foot Penske truck and drove a thousand miles to begin a new life.

A year later, the entire book project fell apart with stunning speed and I was faced with a new choice – to stay or to return to New York City?

I decided God wouldn’t bring me all the way to Michigan for nothing so I stayed put, taking on odd jobs and occasional speaking gigs, trusting I’d be led somewhere magnificent.   It happened on one morning when I made a HUGE discovery on the Internet that deaf pilots had been flying since the 40′s!

This momentous discovery brought my boyhood dream roaring back to life.  I knew immediately that was why I came to Michigan.  Not to work on a book project, but to learn how to fly. (Photo to the left was taken after my very first flight lesson in a Cessna 150).

I stayed there for 7 years until an opportunity materialized that required moving to OH to undergo specialized flight training.  After it was over, many of my critics were stunned to silence because they never believed in their wildest imagination that I would pull off something they considered to be impossible (Photo of me in the cockpit from this article:   Akron Man is First Deaf Pilot to Earn Instrument Rating).

That was February 2006 but I’m still here, in Akron, OH.

And now I’m growing somewhat restless again.  I sense the winds of change and opportunity coming soon.

God will take us on a journey beyond our wildest imagination if we choose to stay open and follow His will.

Food for thought:  What about you? What do you think are the necessary ingredients to respond to the winds of change and opportunity?  Risk?  Faith?  You tell me.

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But that’s another post for later this week.

After the service was over, we went out for a bite to eat and had a rather interesting discussion about his spiritual/religious beliefs, some of which I agreed with while I had difficulty wrapping my head around others (i.e. a wrathful God who doles out punishment).

At one point we were philosophizing (I love to philosophize!) about how God uses everyone as a messenger of sorts to reach out to others.  As I was talking about a specific instance of how I was used, I realized it had the making of a useful post here at Adversity University.

In September of 2000, I was looking for a part-time job to supplement my income while building a professional speaking career.  I had just left the world of Wall Street only a few years prior to pursue my newly established dreams of becoming a speaker, writer and eventually pilot.  Because I was still in the process of developing speech materials and getting myself out there, I needed to find a way to pay the bills.

It was right around that time I had a few months of flight training under my belt after having made the stupendous discovery on the Internet that deaf pilots had been flying since 1948.

By that point, I was taking flight instruction at a small one-man flight school.  But after several lessons, I was informed that Jason Barton (the flight instructor) had been offered a flying job in Colorado.  That meant he was shutting down and moving out West.  (The photo you see is a much thinner me standing next to a small Cessna 150 after my very first flight lesson on March 23, 2000).

An idea occurred to me that I should not only find another flight school, preferably a bigger one, but also find one where I could work part-time in exchange for steep airplane rental discounts.  I had gotten this idea from reading stories of pilots who had financed their flight training that way.

One thing led to another and I found myself at Troy-Oakland airport where I previously shared the story of a flight instructor who gave selflessly.  It was he who told me of an opening at that airport and introduced me to Susan, the personnel director.

An interview was set for me to meet two young men who were running the operations department.  For purposes of this story, I will call them Chris and Joe.

I distinctly remember the interview well.  Chris seemed pleasant but Joe was a bit guarded.  I could tell that Joe wasn’t all that enamored about hiring a deaf guy.   He didn’t seem to think I had what it took to be a line service specialist (i.e. fuel customer planes, tow them around and assist the mechanics with light maintenance work).  Carl, on the other hand, was enthusiastically full of ideas on how they could provide me with a text-based pager that vibrated every time a fuel order came through.

Despite Joe’s stiff resistance, I was hired.

As you can imagine, there was a lot to absorb, one of which was learning how to transfer thousands of gallons of fuel from the fuel farm into the trucks.  The learning curve, while not excessively steep, was a challenge for any newbie. (Photo credit:  Charly Mann)

One evening, I was out behind the fuel farm and Joe was there, watching me hook up the hoses and pull a few switches.  Of course, I was very nervous because I had all sorts of fears about what would happen if I made a mistake like spilling fuel or pulling the wrong switches.

As darkness fell, I had to use a flashlight throughout the task.  Joe was standing there with a smirk on his face.  It was almost as if he was willing me to make a mistake so that he could prove that I wasn’t up for it.

At one point, I asked him for some assistance and show me the ropes.  In an arrogant sort of way, he impatiently huffed and puffed his way through the procedures and literally dared me to follow suit.  That only made me even more nervous.

Needless to say, it was not a pleasant evening.  I had to shine the flashlight at his lips so that I could read them, which caused his ire to rise even further.  Thick tension hung in the air – you could have literally sliced through it, leaving a trail in its wake.

Eventually I eased into the routine and fell into the groove, no longer needing his unwanted attention.  Meanwhile, I was taking flight lessons from that flight instructor I told you about earlier (see the link above).  Apparently this earned me a bit of begrudging respect from Joe, especially after I finally became a pilot.  It didn’t take long after that before we became good friends, often flying together to a lot of different places.

One night we were flying back to the airport from a trip to Ohio (where I would eventually relocate to) when we experienced an electrical failure in the cockpit.

Unlike the photo you see at the left, instrument panel was pitch black.  All we could see was what was outside, the sprawling city lights, to guide us.

Now, this was not in of itself a catastrophic event because we were flying on a clear night but it required nerves of steel.  (Photo credit:  Dr. Engineer-001)

Since I had flown the first leg (from Michigan to Ohio) it was his turn to fly.  The emergency put him on the hot seat and I could see that his face was twitching, the likes of which I had never seen him do before.  The cockiness was no longer there.  This was for real.

I was instantly transformed from a lazy passenger in the right seat to a navigator, pointing out various cities on the way back.  A special flashlight was used to monitor critical instruments like the airspeed and altitude indicators, among others.

All of a sudden, we were a team.  Unlike the day I was learning how to fill up the fuel trucks, we really needed each other.  What a reversal of roles!  Obviously, we made it back safely but neither of us ever forgot the incident.  I would say this flight cemented our friendship even tighter for he realized I was one sharp fella in the cockpit after all.

A few years later, the airport management disbanded and sold the company to someone else who laid off virtually everyone including Joe and I.  Joe found another airport job and got married while I moved down to Ohio to begin my quest for the historic instrument rating.

We kept in touch mainly by email.  One day I received message that he and his wife wanted to fly themselves down to Ohio to meet with me on an urgent matter.

“We want to get some advice from you…it has to do with our baby boy.”

I quickly replied, “Sure, I’d be happy to see you two, come on down anytime!”

Arrangements were made to meet at Wadsworth Airport, a small field without an air traffic control tower where I had been renting planes for some time.  A date and estimated time of arrival was set.

On the day of their arrival, I excitedly drove myself to the airport and waited with anticipation.  Swirling in my mind were thoughts of what on earth they wanted to talk to me about.

Pretty soon a twin engine Diamond aircraft appeared in the sky, very close to the time Joe said they’d arrive.

It was them.

After Joe parked and shut down the aircraft, the three of us piled in my car and headed to Bob Evans for a bite to eat.  We ordered our meals and made idle chit-chat for several minutes.

My heart kept pounding.  I was impatient for them to get to the crust of the real reason for flying down to see me.  They weren’t just coming out to say, “Hello.”

And by the way, while we were catching up on things, I kept marveling at the fact that this guy, who once didn’t like me, was now here with his wife……to get my advice on something!

I kept watching for signs leading to an opening when it finally came.

From his wife.

“About our son……”

Here it comes. Setting down the fork, I leaned across the table.  “Yes?”

Taking a gulp of air she said, “Shortly after birth, the doctors performed routine tests on the baby and…….”

My eyes flitted back and forth between the wife and Joe.   I was stunned to see his eyes welling up.  He was definitely struggling to maintain his manly composure.  This was a guy who was not used to putting his emotions on display.

Suddenly, I knew what was coming.  I held my breath.

She continued, “Our son was born with a severe loss of hearing and we aren’t sure what to do about it.  We were hoping you’d give us some tips.”

There was a long, pregnant pause.  The air seem to crackle.

At that moment, my shoulders eased back and slumped.  It was similar to what people feel when they are finally told the truth after an extended build up of anticipation.

I spent the next several minutes sharing my own experiences of growing up deaf.  I talked about the possibility of getting hearing aids for him or opting for the cochlear implant surgery.  I described how I was taught to speak and how I learned sign language much later in life.

They were cautioned that what my parents chose for me might not necessarily work for them but that the options were there.  Parents of hearing impaired children have much more available to them today then when I was first diagnosed with deafness.   More ideas and tips were given to the very grateful parents.

Before long it was time to take them back to the airport.  I could tell the trip did them much good for they appeared much less burdened than when they first arrived – there was hope for their son.

The moral of the story?  It was no accident Joe was put on my path the way he was.  Without him realizing it, I ended up becoming his teacher.  Even I didn’t know why this guy was put into my life until that very moment.  It was so abundantly clear.  But it took years for the real reason we met to surface.

The universe is like that.  Mysterious, yet exacting.

Food for thought:  Have you ever had someone put on your path to teach you a lesson?  Looking back, can you think of someone who was put on your path so that you could teach them something of value?  I’d love to hear your stories of connection and how they panned out for you (or them).

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Albert Foong, the blogger who I interviewed here at Adversity University last month, invited me to participate in special project called “Spread the Love NOW!”  It is a joint writing project between him and two other self proclaimed monks (Wade from The Middle Way and Kenton of Zen-Inspired Self Development).  Today’s article is my contribution to their efforts to spread love in a different way – self compassion. 

We all talk about loving and accepting others but what about giving ourselves a piece of it?   It’s the hardest thing for many, especially those of us who exhibit ”Type A” personalities.  Somehow we’ve allowed ourselves to be brainwashed into thinking that having self-compassion is the same thing as being arrogant, prideful or selfish.   Nothing could be further from the truth.

Yesterday, I had coffee with Shelley Kimberly, a member of my local mastermind support group who told me how much she enjoyed not only reading this blog but the kind of comments people have been leaving behind.  She reminded me that while I might not yet have thousands upon thousands of subscribers, the kind of emotional responses that I get from readers have been incredibly heartfelt and insightful.  In other words, she explained, it’s better to have a few hundred subscribers who are pulled emotionally into the words I’ve written as opposed to thousands who might just be passing through the night without a care in the world.  

If readers here at Adversity University are emotionally inspired by the work I do here, why not cut myself a little slack and take it all in rather then letting my ego have its way?  From time to time, I let it lure me into thinking that because I don’t have many thousands of subscribers like some of the more “influential” bloggers out there, I must not be making much of an impact.   In the name of renewing self-compassion for myself, I say to the ego:  BAH HUMBUG!

Your emails and comments are evidence that I am touching lives in ways that deeply reasonate with you (and ultimately me).  It reminds me that I am using God’s gift of writing the best way I know how and not to compare myself to others.  To do that would be like comparing apples and oranges.

While I did not have plans for ushering in the new year, I ended up spending time in quiet reflection and prayer last night.  I’ve decided that on the basis of yesterday’s exercise, I am turning the first day of the year into an opportunity to take baby steps and proceed one day at a time.  I vow not to worry over a future that God is truly in charge of and that no matter what happens, I will be okay.   So will you!

Phil Gerbyshak, at Make it Great! wrote a classical example of what self-compassion looks like at: I am here, right where I’m supposed to be – So are you!    While he realizes that there are some things with his life he’s not satisfied with (sound familiar?), he knows that the right thing to do is to have compassion for himself, start fresh the next day and not allow the ego run amok, leaving him depressed in its wake.    

We all know that the new year is a symbolic chance to start over.  But what we don’t realize is that with God at our side, how can we mess up?  He sees the perfection in each of us even if we can’t see it for ourselves.  He has tremendous compassion for us because in His eyes, none of us make mistakes.  In the end, our life is simply an accumulation of experiences with some lessons learned along the way.  If God views us with love and compassion, why can’t we?

Despite the fact that I’ve gotten lost along the way, allowed myself to be buried under an avalanche of debt, was fearful of not having enough money or made choices that might have not been in my best interest, I managed to experience something magical almost every year!  You saw that with the results of yesterday’s little exercise.  I’m willing to bet that if you look hard enough, you’ll find the same thing to holds true for your life as well.

With that said, let’s band together and rejoice the beginning of the new year by giving ourselves the priceless gift of self-compassion.  It’s the best gift you can ever give yourself!

May God bless you as you move forward into the new year.  Know that I am with you in spirit and am grateful to have you as part of my life. 

Food for thought:  Will you take this day to renew self-compassion and move forward, one baby step at a time, and give yourself credit for all you have done and all you will do?

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While I consider myself a rather upbeat, optimistic person, as I grow older,  I find myself entering each new year with a mixture of excitement and anxiety, with the anxiety portion making itself just a teeny bit stronger than the previous year.

I wonder why?

It could be any number of reasons but it seems that the older we get, the faster time goes by, which means the closer you are to the end of your life.  Sounds morbid?  Well, that may be so, but for those of you in your 40′s, 50′s, 60′s or 70s, I am betting many of you are already nodding your head.  

As we enter the new year, I’m already thinking, “Gosh, I’m going to be 48!!  In another 2 years, I’ll be 50!”  I remember thinking when I was much younger, every time I met someone in their 40s or 50s, I always thought to myself, “My Gawd, you’re so OLD!”

Suddenly I’m there!  Where did the time go?

Not only am I thinking about my advancing age, but I tend to analyze where I am in my life, how much I’ve achieved and how much more God has up his sleeve for me.  And then I wonder whether or not I’ve made Him proud with what I’ve done so far.

While in this analytical frame of mind, I sometimes wish I knew what was in store for me.  From time to time, I find myself wishing I could see the future laid out in full technicolor. 

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if, for example,  I knew who I was going to meet, when and how my first book will be published or the results of my choices?   

But then I’d stop myself and exclaim, “If I knew all of that, it would mean I’d know the exact date, time and cause of my death!”  Would that be something I’d want to know in advance?

I don’t think so.  How about you?

So what to do when you can’t predict what will happen in the new year?  I find it helps me to look back and recapture some of the achievements of the years past and see how God was truly watching over me even when I shut Him out.  By doing this, I am reminded that no matter what happens in the new year, I will continue to be watched over and cared for going forward. 

Why don’t you try it?  Get out a piece of paper and write down significant achievements over the years, going back as far as you can.   Stick with the positive highlights of your life.  If you don’t remember anything for a particular year, skip it.

You’ll find that this exercise will help you gain a new sense of perspective, showing you that while you’ve had many challenges along the way, you’ve managed to get through them in one piece.  You will find that God never gave you more than you could handle and that you learned valuable lessons along the way.  You’ll see that everything happened at just the right time, in the right place with the right people for all the right divine reasons!  

As you work your way up to the present year, you’ll see that you are where you’re supposed to be.  God is very happy with you and loves you more than you’ll ever know.  He does not judge or criticize what you’ve done with your life.  He has been with you all along and will continue to be with you if you  just let Him in the door.

You’ll see how neatly everything was put in place to prepare you for what was to come even if you didn’t know what the future held for you.  Come with me and take a look at some of the things that have happened in my life and tell me if you think it was divinely orchestrated or not. 

Every time I do this little exercise, I feel better because I know that based on past experience, something magical is going to happen for me in the new year.  While I do not know what it is, I know it will be life transforming and take me to an even better place.   The same is true for you.

How could it not?  Take a look:

• 1990:  Took a big chance and resigned from a safe, secure 9 to 5 bank job to become a commissioned-based stockbroker.   Was a struggle at first but paid off later.  
• 1995:  Stopped being a party boy, lost 20 pounds, earned 6 figures (as a stockbroker) and appeared on national CNN. 
• 1996:  Joined Toastmasters to learn how to become a better public speaker.  Had a spiritual revelation to quit Wall Street to become a speaker, writer and eventually pilot.  Began to hone my writing skills by keeping daily journals - this eventually led me to writing short stories about my life’s experiences.
• 1997:  Won a humorous speech contest in Toastmasters.  
• 1998:  Moved from New York City to Michigan to co-author a book that I thought would make me “rich and famous.”  (This was my ego talking).   Was invited to appear on the national Leeza talk show to thank my former fifth grade teacher for saying THAT’S RIGHT STEPHEN!
• 1999:  Book project that originally brought me to Michigan fell apart – had to decide whether or not to return to New York City.  Thinking God wouldn’t move me a thousand miles away for nothing, I decided to stay in Michigan.  Did odd jobs to survive plus the occasional speaking engagement.  Became a published writer for the first time with a story in the national best-selling ”Chicken Soup for the College Soul.”
• 2000:  Found myself a reputable literary agent to represent me in my quest get my first book published.  Discovered by accident that deaf pilots had been in existence since the 1940s, which re-ignited my childhood dreams of flight.  Began flight training, not knowing how I would finance it but did so through unexpected sources of income.  Published a second short story in a book called “heartwarmers.”  It was an Amazon best-seller that year.
• 2001:  Literary agent from previous year and I parted ways when no publisher could be found for my book.  Became a certified pilot one day before my 41st birthday.  
• 2002:  A third short story was published in “Magical Souvenirs:  True Spiritual Adventures From Around the World.”
• 2003:  Became a certified commercial pilot.
• 2005:  Moved to Ohio to begin instrument flight training in my quest to become the first deaf pilot to successfully complete it.
• 2006:  Found another literary agent through a referral from a local woman who heard me at a speaking engagement only to have that agent turn me down for representation.  Made aviation history by becoming the first deaf instrument rated pilot, garnering media attention from faraway places like France and Ireland.   Started the Adversity University blog to publish my writings on the Internet.
• 2007:  Managed to raise $8,000 for “Flight to Hartford” where I helped make a young disabled man’s dream of flight come true by flying him in a small plane to a spiritual convention in Hartford, Conn (dubbed “Flight to Hartford.”). 

Can you see how God has been preparing me for something bigger and better down the road?  Do you see a divine purpose emerging and how things worked out even when I ran out of money, lost confidence in my future and/or got fearful on the way?    

Food for thought:  What are some of the major achievements you accomplished over the years and where do you think you’re heading this year?    

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These feelings are hunches.  It’s something we can’t explain or prove – it’s just there.  I haven’t met anyone who hasn’t had a hunch at least once or twice.  They are often right, even if they make no sense.  These hunches often seem to come from the inside and are not based on anything we’ve learned.   It’s a direct knowing.  You just know the answer.  That’s it. 

Consider what happened at the barber shop where I was to get a haircut one day.  While flipping through magazines, waiting for my turn, I had a funny feeling something wasn’t quite right with the barber.  On the surface, I observed nothing out of the ordinary but my intuition was telling me to go elsewhere.  Unfortunately, my ego protested and I ended up paying the price as you saw with Adversity at the Barber Shop.  This is what is meant by the notion that we are given “free will.”  Your angels can provide you with guidance but it’s up to you to act on them.  If you don’t, well, then that’s your choice. 

Years ago while living in New York City, I was riding my bike, going downtown on 8th Avenue at a high rate of speed.  As I approached a certain intersection, something told me to stop.  Thankfully, I paid heed to that inner voice for when I came to a screeching halt, a car shot out like a speeding bullet, narrowly missing me.  

You learned from my “Confessions of a Motivational Speaker” post that I won first place at a humorous speech contest some years ago.  I distinctly remember sitting in the auditorium while they were announcing first, second and third place winners.  The moment they started to rattle off the names, beginning with the third place winner, I was suddenly overcome with a strange sensation.  It was like a special coating of warmth with a tingling sensation inside my head.  The words You won flashed in my mind.  It was startling to say at the least!

What made this even more incredible was that I was up against a formidable contestant, Julie Morgenstern (who I mentioned in the above mentioned article went on to appear on Oprah, becoming a best-selling author in the process).  Despite this “reality,” I knew I had beaten her.  I honestly did not think I did better than her nor did she falter, stumble or anything like that.  In fact, both of us gave great performances.     

You all know about the beach story when I woke up from a nap and received a strong impression that I was supposed to quit Wall Street and become a motivational speaker and writer.  You can see that at Trust that Bigger Things are in Store for You-The Beach.

The thing is, how in the world did I know all this stuff?  

From God and my guardian angels.  Angels are assigned to everyone for the remainder of his/her life, never interfering except for certain life threatening situations that happen “before it’s time to go home.”  They stand ready to serve and guide you.

The main thrust behind most of my writing and speeches is that we all have the capability of getting in touch with our inner spirits. Based on my own experiences, all of us have a direct line to God and the angels.  It is open 24/7, ready to serve as a conduit for guidance and inspiration.  But not everyone is aware of this nor do they know how to access it.

Doreen Virtue, best-selling author of Divine Guidance, says that everyone has the ability to tap into this inner well of wisdom.  According to her, there are five ways of receiving divine messages:

• Visions, images or mental pictures
• Sounds, voices, words
• Feelings and hunches
• Thoughts, ideas and inner certainty

How do you keep the divine hotline open?  The following is by no means a complete list of but they are among the most helpful to me:    

1. Spend time walking in nature – if you do this often enough, you realize you’re not alone.  Somehow you feel a subtle sense of quiet strength in the forest, teeming with positive energy.  I often feel refreshed after such a walk, feeling as if my mind cleared up. 
2. Become consciously aware of unseen forces – this brings into your awareness that there is more to what meets the eye.  It trains you to be on the alert for so-called coincidences and messages just for you, to name a few.  You begin to see answers on billboards, car license plates, a phrase you overheard in someone else’s conversation or perhaps you saw an ad in the newspaper, giving you the answer you’ve been seeking.  By raising your awareness, you become super conscious that God and the angels are always trying to communicate with you and they do it in a number of different ways.    
3. Meditate – focus on your breathing and let all other thoughts pass through you.  This empties the mind to make way for more room for divine messages, in essence decluttering your mind.  See Todd Goldfarb’s suburb article as a guest writer at Zen Habits called ”Meditation for Beginners… “
4. Relax and know that your gut feeling is often correct despite lack of evidence.
5. Talk to God and the angels frequently as possible.  Have a conversation with them throughout your day.  I am always talking to them regardless of whether I’m in the shower, driving, walking in the woods or writing.  I’m always acknowledging their presence (silently or out loud if I’m alone) and thanking them for blessing me with gifts.  The more you talk to them, the more you’ll be able to receive their messages. 
6. Even better than all of the above tips, is the importance of “letting go” of the results.  Be open and not attached to what might happen.  If you try to force the answers to come from within, it’ll block the way.   

By the way, don’t forget to tell me how you would like to name the new interview series at Adversity University by leaving a comment here.   So far readers have responded with “Stephen Hopson’s Interviews,” “The Adversity University Guest Lecture Series” and “Scholarly Visits.”  Let’s see if you can come up with a couple more today and then you can all vote for the best name and win a PRIZE. 

Food for thought:  Have you ever experienced a hunch that you either followed or didn’t but it turned out to be right?  I’d LOVE to hear your stories.  I’m a huge sucker for divine miracles so please indulge me!

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No matter how many times you’ve taken a chance and went with your instincts, you’re still going to experience some level of “wonderment” (I just made that up), wondering whether the decision you made was going to lead you down the path you envisioned for yourself. Ever been there? Me too.

Many of you are aware of events that led up to opening the manuscript of THAT’S RIGHT STEPHEN! to the readers of Adversity University for feedback. This is the result of a decision I made a week ago or two after a friend introduced me to someone who recently self-published and did a very nice job of it. The outcome of that meeting inspired me to push through my fears and make a firm decision to self-publish, rather than waiting for some literary agent to see the potential of the book.

When I got home after the meeting, I was so pumped up and went out to the balcony to have a cigar to celebrate (I’m always looking for an excuse to light up). I had with me a notebook and pen along with a glass of ice cold water. While I was enjoying the cool summer breeze, contemplating the turn of events, I turned and looked at a large green plastic chair that was propped against the wall on the far right side of the balcony. I was reminded of a silent conversation I once had several weeks earlier, “God, show me that you are watching over me. I would like to see you sit on that chair sometime.”

Suddenly I was visited by the most beautiful blue butterfly. It swung right by me, almost touching my forehead. It startled me at first because I hadn’t seen it come my way. When I realized what it was, I knew I was experiencing a close encounter of the spirit kind!

Intrigued, I watched it for several minutes. It flew around the vicinity of the porch, flying to and from where I was sitting. It seemed to be singing, flying gracefully in a carefree manner. Satisfied that this must be the place where things were happening, it proceeded to land right on that chair! Mesmerized, I stared at it, trying my hardest to lobby forth telepathic thoughts. It responded by flapping its wings.

Then it flew away. Thinking it was gone for good, I went inside and went straight to my computer in the other room. As I was powering it up, the butterfly came right back and landed on the screen of my bedroom window, a mere 2 feet from where I was sitting!

It reminded me of an experience Wayne Dyer once had when he was out for a morning stroll on the beach in Hawaii where he maintains a home. He had an even better story to tell. A butterfly actually landed on the palm of his hand and sat there for several minutes! Wayne somehow managed to take a snapshot of it and put it on the cover of one of his books.

Afraid that the clacking sounds of my keyboard would scare it away, I simply sat there, transfixed at its beauty. Sensing an opportunity to really see what it looked like, I inched closer and saw that it was washing its hands. Gratitude washed over me like a tidal wave. While I wasn’t exactly gushing tears, my eyes got a little wet.

Rubbing my eyes, I realized I had better get going with the work that was ahead. Slowly and tentatively, I pulled up the manuscript and began to work. CLACK, CLACK, CLACK. To my surprise and delight, the noise didn’t bother the butterfly. It seemed to be telling me in a matronly tone of voice, “Please continue on with your work while I wash my hands for supper darling.” For the next twenty minutes, my eyes alternated between the keyboard, the computer screen and the gorgeous blue butterfly. I was in heaven.

While I was working, I was also preoccupied with the arrival of a friend who was due to be stopping by any minute for a brief visit. From where I was sitting, I could see people coming and going, in and out of my apartment building. As soon as I saw him arrive, I got up to buzz him in, thinking the mere act of getting out of my chair would scare it away. It didn’t.

Making my way over to the door, imagine my surprise when I saw out of the corner of my eye the butterfly making a textbook landing on the balcony! Apparently it was not done with me. It must have sensed that I was no longer sitting at my desk and wanted to spend a few more minutes of quality time, making sure I knew this wasn’t some random fluke.

Then it flew out of sight, never to be seen again.

Since that fateful visit, a number of doors began to swing open including the wonderful response I got from the Adversity University community with offers to help with the manuscript among other things including but not limited to an unexpected offer to send the final version to a well known publisher for consideration!

If the visit by the butterfly and the resulting outpouring of assistance from the AU community wasn’t divine confirmation, then I don’t know what it was.

But I do know this:

When you “make up your mind” about something, you set the universe into motion. Forces beyond your ability to comprehend–far more subtle and complex than you could imagine–are engaged in a process, the intricate dynamics of which you are only just now beginning to understand. (“Conversations with God” by Neale Donald Walsh)

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That is, until I am inspired or find myself in that creative zone where the words flow from my mind to the keyboard easily and effortlessly. This causes me not to write for days or sometimes weeks, even months until BOOM, I’m hit with something I feel is worth your time. (Photo:  WakaMoul)

Today I found it. I stumbled onto a YouTube video that blew me away this morning and I think it will do the same for you. It might even cause you to experience goose bumps!

While I cannot hear music or the voices behind them, I could tell how this man caused Simon Cowell, one of the judges, to cock his head curiously and bring another judge to tears (no, it wasn’t Paula from American Idol but someone else from Great Britain in another TV show).

Watch their reactions when the man told them what he was going to sing. You could tell by their icy stares that they were extremely skeptical of his ability to carry it out, probably because of his appearance. Somewhat overweight with a chipped tooth and an unsmiling face, this man did not look like a star – not by a long shot. But to his credit, he did not let their looks of disapproval disintegrate his composure. In fact, he took his time, much to everyone’s chagrin!

After Simon told him to “take it away when you are ready,” there was an uncomfortably long period of silence. It was palpable – you could feel it – absolutely no one knew what to make of this man. During those few precious seconds of silence, you could literally “see” the oppressive sense of pressure building up all around him.

But the moment he opened his mouth, it was all over. The reaction was swift. In a matter of seconds, the energy switched from itchy, uncomfortable silence to incredible excitement. It was like pure magic.

Watching the video gave me chills and reminded me of what I experience from time to time when I am called to give a motivational speech. For those of you who know my background, I experienced an epiphany on the beach in Florida during one of my mini-vacations while working on Wall Street (“The Moment of My Spiritual Revelation on the Beach“). It was at that moment when I realized that my gift to the world was not buying and selling stocks but using my ability to speak clearly and articulately despite being born deaf. When I am on stage, something profound takes place, just like what happened to this man you’re about to watch. Like him, I become “one with the audience” and manage to convert even the harshest of skeptics into new fans, clients or even lifelong friends.

Like what happens in the video, I have seen people in the audience sit there with a smirk on their faces and folded arms. It’s if they are saying, “Hey big shot, just who do you think you are? What do you have to say that would make my life better than it is already?” Despite the hurdle in overcoming these silent challenges, there is nothing more exhilarating than watching the face of these people undergo a gorgeous, divine transformation with a hearty laugh, smile or a tear because of something you just said. It’s not about the standing ovations – it’s about transforming lives. Isn’t that what we’re all here to do in the first place?

Okay, here it is:

Wasn’t that incredible or what? This leads me to ask you: What is Your Gift to the World?

Think about it…… You were created for a divine purpose. You came here to carry out a specific mission. What is it?

You say you don’t know? Don’t despair. You really do know. The answer is inside you. All you have to do is ask your inner spirit.

Here’s how you can coax it out of yourself. Ask yourself what areas you are really good in? Never mind the money-making potential. What have you done in the past that made time fly by so fast that you didn’t realize what time it was when you were finished? Can you remember a time when you were a child when hours and hours went by without you noticing?

You might want to review an article I wrote several months ago: “Trust that Your Passions will be Supported by the Universe.” Here’s another one: “Timing is Everything.”

Imagine…someone like this guy who didn’t fit the Hollywood stereotype of a “star” only to come on stage and blow everyone away. My God, isn’t that the stuff that movies are made out of? Yet it actually happened – you saw it with your own eyes. If this guy can do the impossible, why not you? As you saw, you don’t need to look like a top model, have a Ph.D, be a CEO or a celebrity to make a difference.

Dreams do come true!

Food for thought: What is your God given talent for the rest of the world? Your talents are very much needed!

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One of the participants is a single mom who is a screenwriter with a project now being considered by an A-list actress (Nicole Kidman) for a major motion picture. Imagine that! She wrote a wonderful story about overcoming adversity on the long road to success. Reading it lifted my spirits and confirmed that we are all in on this together. Of course, she will be among 500 people listed on a future post here at Adversity University and you will have an opportunity to be uplifted by her story too.

The title of today’s article magically came to me last night while watching “Pay it Forward.” Have you seen that movie? I highly recommend it – it moved me to tears because it was so heartfelt. It made me want to run out and “pay it forward.” So I came up with an idea for today’s article.

About a month ago, “It’s OKAY to Celebrate Your Defeats!” was written in response to a major literary agent passing on my book proposal for THAT’S RIGHT, STEPHEN! A follow up article entitled “Inside the Mind of a Literary Agent” proved to be quite cathartic and hopefully inspired you because it surely put things in perspective for me.

Shortly after those two articles were written, I was faced with a decision – should I self-publish or continue the “traditional way”?

One of the most powerful techniques of overcoming what other people perceive to be impossible is to make a firm decision, regardless of what it is, and then sticking with it. That’s how I became a successful Merrill Lynch stockbroker, a deaf pilot who made aviation history, among other things.

My good friend Stephen Shapiro wrote a brief but fascinating rundown called “Sobering Statistics About the Book Industry.” Despite the overwhelming odds of getting published, I’ve decided to go the traditional way. Here’s my thinking on this: “If I can become the world’s first deaf instrument rated pilot despite the FAA regulations to the contrary, why can’t I defy the odds again?”

Engineering the impossible requires at least four things:

1. Belief in yourself

2. Finding someone (just one, only one) who also believes in you. All that needs to happen is that you will be divinely led to this person who is in a position to open doors for you (like that lady who helped me with the book proposal – even though I didn’t get literary representation with her agent in the end, she did get my foot in the door of a powerful literary agency in NYC – if she believes in me, imagine who else might!).

3. Perseverance

4. Create the mindset that your time will come, just have faith in God’s plan for you.

Once I made the decision to find myself a literary agent, I went out and got six books from the local library on how to write a better book proposal. Day by day I read, take notes and then go back to the computer to tweak things a little more. Taking action like that is a signal to the universe that I am serious about my intentions. This goes along with the H.E.A.R. Principle where “A” stands for “Take Action.” ACTION speaks louder than words.

I am sharing this with you not because I want to portray myself as a mythic figure of gothic proportions who overcomes great odds but to hold myself accountable to you, my readers, and to the rest of the universe of my intentions. In essence, I’ve personally invited you along for the trip. By having you by my side in spirit, I know I have your love and support, which makes this journey all the more worthwhile. By the way, you already have an idea of what the book will be like because it’s all in here, in this blog! In fact, I will be creating an e-book in the near future so that you can read it, for free, in an easy and accessible location.

My desire is to create a point of reference where I can bring future readers back to this post to show that I was at one time a person who had the dream of getting published. If you can learn to ignore so-called statistics or man-made rules, then you’ve got your work cut out for you. All that is required is a firm decision from the deepest part of your being and then moving forward from there. Henry Ford once said:

“If you think you can do a thing or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right.”

Food for thought: Have you made a firm decision to commit yourself to a certain course of action today?

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