You gotta admit my titles are nothing if not interesting. 🙂

When I was young there was a black and white television show (yes I’m that old) called Gunsmoke. The hero was a town sheriff named Matt Dillion. Each week Marshall Dillion would save the day, dodging maelstroms of bullets with ease and firing off hundreds of rounds from his six gun. In all my years of watching there are two things I never saw him do, reloading his gun or going to the bathroom.

I remember, in the old days, when I used to lead weekly meditation gatherings, someone said to me “It must be nice to be in a place where nothing bothers you.”  My response was “We don’t ever master life, we master managing life.”

Life, no matter who you are, is a wonderful adventure of crests and troughs. One day you’re majestically riding the crest of the wave and the next …. well … you’re not. But that’s life. So often I think people figure that once they “have it all together” they can simply glide on easy street for the rest of their life.

It’s just not true. Not for them. Not for me. Not for their heroes and idols. Not even for Marshal Dillion.

No matter how profound or profane your current physical circumstances may look, wherever you go there you are.

The people we look up to and admire. Those people who we assume have it all together, don’t. They do not get a winning hand dealt to them ever day. The true power they embody is derived from realizing and understanding that fact, and developing their own set of tools for managing their way through them.

And that’s the best news you’ll hear today. True freedom, peace, and power does not come from attaining a place of glorious enlightenment where you never have problems and always are dealt a winning hand. It comes from knowing whatever hand you’re dealt you have the ability to manage your way through them. You don’t have to incessantly worry about what’s coming around the next corner because whatever it is you have the character and ability to overcome it and have learned that right on the other side of the challenge is the next victory.

It’s quite simple really, the variety of “Matt Dillions” in your life, whether it’s a mentor or an idol have got to where they are by consistently making one very basic choice. They chose to walk through the challenges, problems, and tragedies that stopped others.

I have to admit I live a pretty cool lifestyle. As I type this I’m relaxing in a coffee shop gazing out at the brilliance of new fallen snow of mountain tops. Seven days ago I was meditating on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico.

Having said that, I still have frustrations and challenges that I manage. Now, because I’ve cleaned up my “baggage” my problems now are a lot more fun than they used to be, however, I still have my up days and down days. I still have obstacles jump out from behind a desire I’m heading towards. When this happens, I reach into my well worn tool pouch and pull out methods, techniques, and understandings and manage my way through them. The very same tools I’ve discovered, used, and cherished from the moment I took my first step into living a life focused on evolution instead of survival.

And yes, just like Batman, I still have to pee.