August 20, 2001
Goose Bump Moments
Something happens. Nothing extreme or dramatic. A
chance meeting. Something we could
not have predicted, a shift, ever so slightly – and our life takes a turn.
Jungian analyst Robert Johnson calls these seemingly
random occurrences slender threads. They
appear in many forms, and lead us forward – allowing our lives to unfold.
What a splendid thought – the life of our destiny
– and the image of slender threads guiding us.
“Goose bumps happen when your soul comes close to
you, breathes lightly on the back of your neck, and wakes you up.”
Rachel Naomi Remen
Stretching
Lessons: The Daring That Starts from Within; Sue Bender
As we sat chatting over
breakfast at a quiet café, something Janice said stirred me and I felt the
surface of my arms come alive. Looking
at my skin, I smiled at the familiar sight of goose bumps.
I called Janice’s attention to them and commented
on how goose bump moments were occurring regularly. What used to be a rare experience has been replaced by that
tingling sensation daily with some days offering multiple encounters of the
flesh kind.
Janice smiled and asked if I new what goose bumps
were and as I said no, I braced myself for a scientific or medical explanation
which she is capable of offering. To
my surprise she replied, “It’s when you make a connection with your soul”.
She went on to refer to the quotes above and they
struck me as a truth I had never known. What
an amazing thought that the emotions that trigger our body to respond by
stimulating the hair follicles could really be a soul response.
It would not be surprising that as my soul becomes more awake and
actively involved in my life, my soul would more frequently breathe lightly on
my body giving me goose bumps.
I am more touched by life than ever before resulting
in heightened awareness of what goes on around me and the people I encounter.
It has been a conscious decision on my part to choose this path.
To someone observing me from a distance, my routine from former years
would look uninterrupted. But if
that observer could feel what I am experiencing, they would undoubtedly be
overwhelmed by the frequency of goose bump moments.
Life offers us a chance to view things from vastly
different perspectives. It also
allows us to change our perspective of things we held true all our lives.
Up to now, I have been amused by the physical reaction I have experienced
from having an emotional moment. Some
have called it goose bumps, others have called it goose pimples, but regardless
of the name, my perspective has shifted from the physical to the spiritual
explanation of this phenomenon. When
I try to reconcile what occurrences have triggered this response in me, I see
clearly that my soul was stirred by a thought, a touch, a story, or a glance.
I am convinced that as my soul awakens further so will my goose bump
moments.
With respect, acceptance, and love,
Excerpt from Stretching Lessons: The Daring That Starts from Within by Sue Bender, Copyright 2001, HarperCollins Publishers