Divinely Guided and Reminded Through Books
You wanna know how I know I’m magic? The more my awareness grows, the more I notice everything connecting. Puzzle pieces crafting themselves in service of Me. A couple of months ago, I spoke to my Therapist, and even my Partner, about this feeling I was experiencing. Craving community; really wanting to be a part of something, to impact people, in real life.
Somewhere down the line, I forgot I was feeling that way, as strong as I’m now reminded that feeling was. I reached out to a friend or two, spent some time outside, and volunteered once, and I guess that was that. I completely stopped thinking about it until about 31 minutes ago.
This year, I made the agreement with myself to read at least one book per month and August’s book was Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. My Partner had suggested it to Me as the main character, Lauren, someone who experiences hyper-empathy as a disorder, reminded him of Me. In reading the book, funny enough, I was faced with my own extreme empathy. It was really tough for me to read at some points, so I read it slowly, much slower than I’d originally intended.
Early on as I read or maybe even a bit before I started reading Parable of the Sower, I came across a Woman I follow on Tik-Tok, Cat Lantigua, announcing the release of her book. As someone with that goal, myself, I excitedly congratulated her in her comments and put her book in my Amazon cart.
I was a little more than halfway through Parable of the Sower when I thought of Cat’s book again. I remembered that it looked like a short read and had a colorful cover. Without any memory of the content of the book, I decided it needed to be my next read to give Me a break between the two Parable books, and the far too familiar depictions of the world within them. Plus, I knew Cat’s book being a shorter read would keep Me on track for my goal of reading a book per month.
So, here I was today - a little while ago, I sat down to start this cute little book, when, for the first time, I really read the title, Build It and They Will Come: A Guide to Architecting Intentional Community. I was instantly floored by the reminder of what I had forgotten. Just a couple of months ago, I was distraught with the feeling that I was lacking community. Over the past six weeks, I slowly read Parable of the Sower which perfectly sheds light on a girl, wise well beyond her years, cultivating and leading a community to survival and spiritual practice.
I opened Build It and They Will Come, and right past the table of contents, what do I see? A quote that reads: “You Change. All that you Change Changes you. The only lasting truth Is Change. God Is Change.” - Octavia Butler. An excerpt, the very beginning, no less, of Parable of the Sower.
Wow.
I would venture to say that that too, that moment, is God. I am grateful for the reminders. The reminder of what path I’m on and meant to be on, and the reminder that I am divinely guided and divinely connected. My awareness continues to be a great gift.
I am looking forward to continuing to learn from Great Women like Cat Lantigua as I navigate the cultivation of my own community.
Pick up her book here: Build It and They Will Come at Target
