Over the holiday break my wife and I decided to take a short vacation across the border to Quebec. From where we live in Vermont the Canadian border is only about an hour away. Not too far to go to experience a whole different culture and language.
I found a nice Bed & Breakfast in Magog – La Belle Victorienne. I looked forward to our first stop, an awesome outdoor spa I discovered online – Le Spa Nordic Station. It has pine trees, hot pools, cold waterfalls, saunas, a river, resting rooms…perfect for a cold winter day!
Le Spa Nordic Station
We left Vermont on Friday around 11am, with hopes of getting to the Spa around 1 o’clock. Before we left I’d printed up directions on how to get there. Instead of taking the main roads, I wanted to “see the sights”, so I redirected the maps program to take backroads. The new, backroads directions had 21 different turns to go the couple hours to our destination. I figured with these exact turn-by-turn directions there was no need for an actual map.
That is all great expect for the fact that as we drove it became more and more evident that we were driving into the biggest snow storm of the winter and it was hard to see. But, you know, we were on vacation!As I drove, Jane called out the various turns, and we were doing great. The snow started to thicken. On the hilly roads we had to excelerate down one slick side to race up the next, which was a bit hair raising. After a few miles of ups and downs, the road started a long, steady climb at a steeper pitch. Besides that, it didn’t seem as well plowed as we were used to. Besides that, it got bumpy and we realized we were driving on a dirt road up the side of a mountain. But, hey, we’re on vacation, so who cares. 🙂
After we confirmed via a street sign that this bumpy mountain road was actually the correct road, we considered turning around. We felt like we might actually get stuck if we kept going. The thing was, turning around had it’s own risks of sliding off the road, or getting hit by oncoming traffic…We plowed ahead. After another mile of heavier snowfall, deeper unplowed snow on the road, a narrower road, riskier driving, we considered turning around again when Jane said, “Hey, look in those people’s driveway…they have a recycling bin!”
In our minds, this had a few meanings — if there is a recycling bin, it must mean there is a recycling truck. If there is a recycling truck, it must mean the road would get plowed someday. Also, because we are from Vermont, a recycling bin is a reminder that all is not lost in the world, so why worry! We plowed ahead. Wonderfully, less than a mile later the road reached the top of the mountain and we slowly, safely descended back to an actually paved, plowed road. After that it was a short distance to our destination, Le Spa Nordic Station, only 4 hours after leaving home!!
What this whole experience makes me think about is the role of signs and guides in helping each of us on our path. Guides are everywhere, we just have to recognize them and interpret what they mean to us, and be willing to listen. Whether it’s a recycling bin that tells us to continue on our path, or a fortune cookie, or a bird flying over head.
We are already perfect as our True Self. We already have it all together, but sometimes we miss the guides. The signs and messages we receive, if we are open to them, help us to stay on our path. This is not only true with external signs we come across as we are driving in snowstorms on dirt roads.  It’s also important see  the signs in our inner landscape in the form of our emotions.
If we look at our emotions as guides, then we see that all emotions have value and exist for our own growth. In our hearts we already know who we are and where we are going. Sometimes our path can get a bit gnarly, but if we are open to it, there are guides within and outside of ourselves to help us back to our True Self.
Here is a wonderful poem by Rumi that expresses the value of inner guides:
The Guest House
This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still, treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.