Inspirational Quotes & Stories:
There are No Accidents
I'm not someone who
believes in coincidences or accidents. I believe with all my heart that
everything happens for a reason. I believe with all my heart that
everything that happens, no matter how you choose to perceive it,
happens for your own good, so that you might learn something from it. I
believe with all my heart that when you meet someone, be it a homeless
person, a person at a party, or an individual through the Internet,
there is a reason for your meeting. There is something to be learned
through the experience. The relationship could last a minute or a
lifetime, but it has been offered to you as a gift to assist you on your
journey toward becoming a more caring human being, toward understanding
your fellow man or woman better, toward becoming more Godlike.
When I meet another human, I try to see the gift that has been placed
before me. I look for the opportunity to remember the perfection in my
brother or sister. I know that if I can see it in a so-called stranger,
I can see it in myself. For, in my heart, I believe that we all are one,
that we all are a perfect part of God. From your homeless brother in the
street to Jesus himself, we all are a perfect part of God, not one is
greater or lesser than the other. And it is in seeing and experiencing
this that I remember that I am also a perfect part of God. I forget this
sometimes but I know that forgetting is simply a way of remembering
better. So when the gift of the presence of another human is offered to
me, the gift I receive is the opportunity to remember my perfection by
allowing them to choose their own way, and the gift I offer them is to
make their time here, be it a moment or a lifetime, a little gentler,
kinder and more loving.
-
James Blanchard Cisneros, You Have Chosen to Remember: A Journey From
Perception to Knowledge, Peace of Mind and Joy, p. 94-95
Read the section of the book that this
inspirational quote comes from.
I'm not sure what
the record is in the Guinness Book of World Records for stubbing your
toe, but there was a time during a two-month period when I had to be
close to that record. Every time I stubbed my toe, I uttered an
expletive, or at least thought an expletive. I had been taught by
watching others react this way. It was the "normal and acceptable" way
to react to such an incident. It was the way I had been unconsciously
trained to react. My friends reacted this way, so I felt that it was
fine. Yet, little by little, I became uncomfortable with such a
reaction. One day, I decided that there must be a better, more positive
way to react to such an incident.
-
James Blanchard Cisneros, You Have Chosen to Remember: A Journey From
Perception to Knowledge, Peace of Mind and Joy, p. 111
Read the section of the book that this
inspirational quote comes from.
Some time ago, I
boarded a plane headed back to Miami. I was on the right side of the
plane, in a three-seat row, seated in the window seat. A woman I did not
know was sitting in the isle seat and there was no one sitting in the
middle seat. Being in tourist class, and being 6'4" and 220 pounds, I
was hoping that either a model from Elle magazine would sit next to me
or that no one would sit in the middle seat. As soon as I silently
expressed my hopes to God, a woman and her eight-year-old child dashed
them. The mother told the young boy to sit in the middle and that she
would sit a few rows back. Normally, I would have offered my seat to the
mother and let her sit with her child. But two things stopped me from
doing this: one, the mother really seemed to be relieved that she would
have some time to herself, and two, the kid seemed to be a little hyper
and complained about sitting by himself. I figured I could give the mom
some rest and, at the same time, teach this brat a little courage and
independence. Because I was doing two good deeds with one action, I
figured that if the plane went down, I would definitely have a better
chance of surviving than those people who had not done their good deed
for the day! Plus, I was now sitting next to a child, which in and of
itself, spiritually speaking, has to offer more protection.
>> read more
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James Blanchard Cisneros, You Have Chosen to Remember: A Journey From
Perception to Knowledge, Peace of Mind and Joy, p. 114
Read the section of the book that this
inspirational quote comes from.
You have been taught to believe in such things as good luck and bad
luck, in accidents and coincidences. Well, I am here to remind you, as
well as myself, that there are no such things. All these things are
inventions of society, made in the hopes of explaining events that just
didn't fit in to a "normal everyday experience." Centuries ago, what
most people today call bad luck or an accident was explained by saying
that the gods were disappointed or angry with you. But there was usually
a way out. You simply made a sacrifice to the gods, an offering to the
high priests, or to someone else in power, to guarantee that no such
thing happened again. These rituals worked until bad luck or an accident
came knocking on your door again.
Most of us have stopped making scarifies or offerings in order to avoid
apparent hiccups in our daily experiences. As always, I remind you that
I personally have nothing against such rituals. People, in my opinion,
should do and believe in whatever they wish, whatever brings them peace.
I am simply offering another way of looking at such events. Most of us
no longer believe that the gods are responsible for accidents and bad
luck, but we still believe that control of these hiccups is out of our
hands and that we have absolutely no connection to their manifestation.
We still believe that we have little or no control over what happens to
us. I remind you that this isn't so. You not only have control over what
happens to you, but you also have control over your attitude and
reaction to these circumstances or events.
-
James Blanchard Cisneros, You Have Chosen to Remember: A Journey From
Perception to Knowledge, Peace of Mind and Joy, p. 133-134
Read the section of the book that this
inspirational quote comes from.
There are literally no such things as accidents. For example, let's take
the extreme case of a life-changing or life-ending car crash. Obviously,
a car crash of this magnitude is a major event. If someone you know has
died in such an incident, let me sincerely say, before I go any further,
that I am sorry for your loss. I understand that in this world, such an
event would be perceived with sadness, anger and pain. The ego would
have you experience anger, sadness and pain and call it a normal and
correct response. Later, the ego would have you blame and judge.
Finally, it would have you carry this anger, sadness, pain, blame and
judgment for as long as possible. This is the ego's solution for you.
This, in short, is what you have been told and taught to be a proper
response to such an incident. The ego also tells you that if you follow
its laws, you will find happiness and peace. Can you allow your mind to
be open to the possibility that the ego's answer is insane? My friend,
the ego's insane solution only sounds sane to an insane world.
-
James Blanchard Cisneros, You Have Chosen to Remember: A Journey From
Perception to Knowledge, Peace of Mind and Joy, p. 135
Read the section of the book that this
inspirational quote comes from.
"There is no such
thing as an accident. When your soul chooses to leave your physical
body, it will leave. Life is not an amateur circus tent where those who
enter are individual, lonely performers with no script and no
director-only a tumbling about, a fling through the air, and then a
crash. No, that is false. As souls, you are self-determining. You decide
when to be born. You create your life every minute of every day by what
you choose to believe. You decide when to die. All things evolve around
the total truth of love, balance, order, cause and effect. These are
Divine laws."
14
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Pat Rodegast,
Emmanuel Book 1
Cited in You Have Chosen to Remember, p.137
Read the section of the book that this
inspirational quote comes from.
An excellent book
on the subject of what happens to us in between incarnations, or our
life between lives, is titled "Journey of Souls," by Michael Newton,
Ph.D. By regressing 29 people, Dr. Newton literally takes the reader on
a journey describing what occurs from death to rebirth. One example that
I found very helpful in reinforcing my belief that there are no
accidents is that of case number 26. This case involved an athletic
woman who enjoyed sports, despite having been bothered all her life with
reoccurring leg pain. She had been to many doctors for this pain, yet
nothing physically wrong was ever found. The following excerpt of the
session is taken directly from "Journey of Souls":
"Almost at once,
the woman dropped into her most recent past life, and became a
six-year-old girl named Ashley, living in New England in the year 1871.
Ashley was riding in a fully loaded, horse drawn carriage, when suddenly
she opened the door and tumbled out and under the vehicle. When she hit
the cobblestone street, one of the heavy rear carriage wheels rolled
over her legs at the same point above her knees, crushing the bones. My
subject re-experienced a sharp pain in her legs while describing the
fall.
Despite efforts
from local physicians and the prolonged use of wood splints, Ashley's
leg bones did not heal properly. She was never able to stand or walk
again and poor circulation caused repeated swelling in her legs for the
rest of her rather short life. Ashley died in 1912, after a productive
period of years as a writer and tutor of disadvantaged children. When
the narration of Ashley's life ended, I returned my subject to the
spirit world.
The following is a
transcript of the session with Dr. Michael Newton and his subject,
Ashley. Ashley had experienced lives as a crippled woman and as Leth, a
strong Viking.
Dr. N: In your
history of body choices why did you wait a thousand years between being
a physically strong man and a crippled woman?
S: Well, of course,
I developed a better sense of who I was during the lives in between. I
chose to be crippled to gain intellectual concentration.
Dr. N: You chose a
broken body for this?
S: Yes, you see,
being unable to walk made me read and study more. I developed my
mind...and listened to my mind. I learned to communicate well and to
write with skill because I wasn't distracted. I was always in bed.
Dr. N: Was any
characteristic about your soul particularly evident in both Ashley and
Leth the Viking?
S: That part of me
which craves fiery expression was in both bodies.
Dr. N: I want you
to go to the moment when you were in the process of choosing the life as
Ashley. Tell me how you decided on this particular damaged body.
S: I picked a
family in a well-established, settled part of America. I wanted a place
with libraries and to be taken care of by loving parents so I could
devote myself to scholarship. I constantly wrote to many unhappy people
and became a good teacher.
Dr. N: As Ashley,
what did you do for this loving family who took care of you?
S: It always works
two ways-the benefits and liabilities. I chose this family because they
needed the intensity of love with someone totally dependent upon them
all their lives. We were very close as a family because they were lonely
before I was born. I came late, as their only child. They wanted a
daughter who would not marry and leave them to be lonely again.
Dr. N: So it was a
trade off?
S: Most definitely.
Dr. N: Then let's
track this decision further back to the place of life selection, when
your soul first saw Ashley's life. Did you see the details of your
carriage accident then?
S: Of course, but
it wasn't an accident-it was supposed to happen.
Dr. N: Once you
came to earth, who was responsible for the fall? Was it your soul-mind
or Ashley's biological mind?
S: We work in
unison. She was going to be fooling with the carriage door handle and
... I capitalized on that.
Dr. N: Tell me what
was going through your soul-mind in the life selection room when you saw
the scene of Ashley falling and being injured.
S: I thought about
how this crippled body could be put to good use. I had some other
choices for body injuries, but I preferred this one because I didn't
want to have the capability for much movement.
Dr. N: I want to
pursue the issue of causality here. Would Ashley have fallen anyway if
she had a soul other than your own?
S: (defensively) We
were right for each other.
Dr. N: That doesn't
answer my question.
S: (long pause)
There are forces beyond my knowledge as a spirit. When I saw Ashley for
the first time, I was able to see her without me....healthy,
older-another possibility.
Dr. N: Now we are
getting somewhere. Are you saying if Ashley had begun her life with
another soul entity that she might not have fallen at all?
S: Yes, that's a
possibility...one of many. She could have also been less severely
injured, with the ability to walk on crutches.
Dr. N: Well, did
you see a physically healthy Ashley living happily without your soul?
S: I saw a grown
woman...normal legs...unhappiness with a man...frustration at being
trapped in an unrewarding life...sorrowful parents...but easier. (Voice
becomes more firm.) No! That course would not have worked well for
either of us-I was the best soul for her.
Dr. N: Were you the
prime mover of the fall, once you elected to become Ashley's soul?
S: It...was both of
us... we were one at that moment...she was being naughty, bouncing
around in the carriage, playing with the door handle when her mother
said she must stop. Then I was ready and she was ready.
Dr. N: Just how
rigid was your destiny? Once you were Ashley's soul was there any way
you could have backed out of this entire incident in the carriage?
S: (pause) I can
tell you I had a flash just before I fell. I could have pulled back and
not fallen out. A voice inside my mind said, "It's an opportunity, don't
wait any longer, take the fall, this is what you wanted-it's the best
course of action."
Dr. N: Was that
particular moment important?
S: I didn't want
Ashley to get too much older.
Dr. N: But, the
pain and suffering the child went through...?
S: It was horrible.
The agony of those five weeks was beyond belief. I almost died, but I
learned from enduring it all, and I now see that the memories of Leth's
capacity for managing pain helped me.
Dr. N: Did your
inner mind have any regrets during those moments when the pain was most
severe?
S: As I slipped in
and out of consciousness during the worst of the ordeal, my mind began
gaining in power. Overriding my damaged body, I started to better
control the pain...the lying in bed...the doctors helpless. The skills I
developed in managing pain were later used to concentrate on my studies
and my counselor was helping me, too, in subtle ways.
Dr. N: So you
gained a lot in this life by being unable to walk?
S: Yes, I became a
listener and a thinker. I corresponded with many people and learned to
write with inspiration. I gained teaching ability with the young, and
felt guided by an internal power.
Dr. N: Was your
counselor proud of your accomplishments after you returned to the spirit
world?
S: Very, although I
was told I had become a little too indulged and pampered (laughs), but
that's an okay trade-off.
Dr. N: How does
your experience with the strong body of Leth and the weak one of Ashley
help you today, or is this of no consequence?
S: I benefit every
day by my appreciation of the necessity of a union between mind and body
to learn lessons.
During my client's
reliving of the street scene, in which her legs were broken, I initiated
desensitization measures. At the close of our session together, I then
deprogrammed her generational memory of leg pain entirely. This woman
later notified me she has had no further pain and regularly enjoys
playing tennis.
15
-
Michael Newton,
Ph.D.,
Journey of Souls
Cited in You Have Chosen to Remember, p. 138-142
Read the section of the book that this
inspirational quote comes from.
You're always in the right place at the right time
In
order to experience peace of mind and joy in the present moment, trust
and have faith that you are always in the right place at the right time.
The following short story highlights this point and is taken from Lilly
Walter's book, "One Hand Typing and Keyboarding Manual: With Personal
Motivational Messages from Others Who Have Overcome."
"One of my joys
and passions is my voice. I love to perform in our local community
theaters. My throat became very sore during a particularly grueling show
run. It was my first time performing an operatic piece, and I was
terrified that I had actually done some damage to my vocal cords. I was
a lead and we were about to open. So I made an appointment with my
family doctor, where I waited for an hour. I finally left in a huff,
went back to work, grabbed a phone book and found a throat specialist
close by. Once more, I made an appointment, and off I went.
The nurse showed me
in and I sat down to wait for the doctor. I was feeling very
disgruntled. I rarely get sick, and here I was, sick when I needed to be
healthy. Besides, I had to take time out of my workday to go to two
different doctors, both of whom kept me waiting. It was very
frustrating. Why do these things have to happen? A moment later the
nurse came back in, and said, "May I ask you something personal?"
This seemed odd;
what else do they ask you but personal questions in a doctor's office?
But I looked at the nurse and replied, "Yes, of course."
"I noticed your
hand," she said hesitantly.
I lost half of my
left hand in a forklift accident when I was 11. I think it is one of the
reasons I didn't follow my dream of performing in theater, although
everyone says, "Gee, I never noticed! You are so natural." In the back
of my mind I thought that they only wanted to see perfect people on
stage. No one would want to see me. But I love musical comedies, and I
do have a good voice. So one day, I tried out at our local community
theatre. I was the first one they cast! That was three years ago. Since
then, I have been cast in almost everything I tried out for.
The nurse
continued, "What I need to know is how has this affected your life."
Never in the 25 years since it happened has someone asked me this. Maybe
they'll say, "Does it bother you?" but never anything as sweeping as,
"How has it affected your life?"
After an awkward
pause, she said, "You see, I just had a baby, and her hand is like
yours. I, well, need to know how it has affected your life."
"How has it
affected my life?" I thought about it a bit, so I could think of the
right words to say. Finally, I said, "It has affected my life, but not
in a bad way-I do many things that people with two normal hands find
difficult. I type about 75 words a minute, I play the guitar, I have
ridden and shown horses for years, and I even have a Housemasters
Degree. I'm involved in musical theater, and I am a professional
speaker. I am constantly in front of a crowd. I do television shows four
or five times a year. I think it was never "difficult" because of the
love and encouragement of my family. They always talked about all the
great notoriety I would get because I would learn how to do things with
one hand that most people had trouble doing with two. We were all very
excited about that. That was the main focus, not the handicap.
"Your daughter does
not have a problem. She is normal. You are the one who will teach her to
think of herself as anything else. She will come to know she is
"different," but you will teach her that different is wonderful. Normal
means you are average. What's fun about that?"
She was silent for
a while. Then she simply said, "Thank you" and walked out.
I sat there
thinking, "Why do these things have to happen?" Everything happens for a
reason, even that forklift falling on my hand. All the circumstances
leading up to being at this doctor's office, and this moment in time
happened for a reason.
The doctor came in,
looked at my throat and said he wanted to anesthetize and put a probe
down it to examine it. Well, singers are very paranoid about putting
medical instruments down their throats, especially ones so rough they
need to be anesthetized!
I said, "No
thanks," and walked out.
The next day, my
throat was completely better."
22
-
Lilly Walters,
One Hand Typing and Keyboarding Manual:
With Personal Motivational Messages from Others Who Have Overcome
Cited in You Have Chosen to Remember, p. 193-195
Read the section of the book that this
inspirational quote comes from.
Footnotes / Acknowledgments
Every effort has been made to provide accurate source attribution.
Should any attribution be found to be incorrect, the author welcomes
written documentation supporting correction for subsequent printings.
For material not in the public domain, selection was made according to
generally accepted fair-use standards and practices.
14. Emmanuel, Pat Rodegast,
Judith Stanton, Emmanuel Book 1, Copyright 1985 (Bantam Books).
>>
back to quote
15.
Michael Newton, Journey
of Souls: Case Studies of Life Between Lives, Copyright 1994 (Llewelyn
Publications).
>>
back to quote
22.
Lilly Walters, (www.motivational-keynote-speakers.com)
One Hand Typing and Keyboarding Manual: With Personal Motivational
Messages From Others Who Have Overcome, Copyright 2003 (ABC Schermerhorn
Walters, Co.).
>>
back to quote
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Chosen to Remember'
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