In the fall
of 2002, Tim and I moved back to our hometown in West Virginia. As we were
unpacking, Tim removed a long tube from a box and unrolled many of our favorite
posters. One was of a beautiful castle, which neither of us remembered buying.
We weren’t sure how it made its way deep inside our roll of posters.
Tim said, “I'm
going to hang this on the wall in our office to inspire us. It looks like a
European castle, but also vaguely familiar.”
A few weeks
later, my friend Kathy called and said there was an extra space open on her
European ski trip. It was an exciting itinerary. The two-week trip would begin by
flying into Vienna, Austria, boarding a train weaving through the Austrian Alps
to Innsbruck and ending with a bus ride and tour of Munich, Germany. I had
never been to Europe, but it had been on my bucket list for a long time.
Amazingly, I was able to get a frequent flyer ticket and my first-ever passport
in time to accompany her.
In early
February 2003, the week before we were to leave, it was imminent that there
would be a war in Iraq. The news reported, “Americans are in danger and should
not travel abroad.” Friends and family members asked me to reconsider. My
instincts told me that I should still go.
It was an
exciting trip. We toured through the Alps including places where the Sound of
Music had been filmed. On one special trip, we were taken by bus to visit the
castle that is a model for the showpiece at Disneyland. After riding a bus for
two hours, we had to hike up a snow covered road for a couple of miles. The tour
guide said in broken English that it was Cinderella’s Castle.
About half
way up the hill, I rounded a corner and there was a gift shop. What I saw took
my breath away. Hanging on the wall was the exact same poster of the castle
that was hung in my office! I realized then that this was the castle that I
would soon see for real.
At that
point, I felt that my instincts to take this trip were right on.
If I didn’t
believe in my intuition before, this made me realize I was supposed to be here.
I’ve remembered this lesson from that point forward so that I always try to
listen to that inner voice.
This
morning, I woke up with a gnawing feeling that a friend may need a boost. She has
been struggling with an overloaded work schedule, an unexplained illness and
being a caregiver for her spouse.
My gift to
her today was a thoughtful email. I told her how successful that she has always
been and that her challenges will make her stronger. Something tells me that
she too will round a corner and be reminded to trust her intuition and to know
that she is a strong and powerful woman.
In Giving,
Robin
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