We all learn our lessons, but only you decide how you want to learn them.
Derek O’Neill
I am ignorant! This statement brings a lot of inner liberation, and the more we become aware that we are all ignorant in our own way, the sooner we can change it – and it won’t bite us in the bum anymore. That’s why the phrase “ignorance is bliss” is only half true up to a certain point in our lives because if we want to evolve, and that’s what we’re here for, regardless of whether we consciously want to or not, we can’t run away from our lessons.
I’ve lived in Bali since the pandemic, with a few stops in between, and I’ve always had an aversion to bureaucracy. However, everything always worked out great, so I got through entry and exit during my stay without any problems. Nevertheless, some things were still unresolved, and even if I didn’t want to admit it to myself, there was always a tiny, invisible, oppressive feeling inside me.
The last few weeks, mainly, have been very significant in terms of the current energy. We’ve had a couple of solar eclipses, and Mercury is retrograde again. Our to-do lists have been getting longer and longer, and we’ve been restlessly jumping from A to B as if we haven’t had time to breathe. What’s unique about this time is that we can create our future in new ways and balance our karmic debts from the past, learn from them, and let them go. However, it is important how we learn them. If we face them with fear and despair, we stay there. If we meet them with humor and love, another door opens for us. So it may be that old stories, people, patterns, fears… resurface during this time to be looked at more closely because it is ALWAYS about our personal growth.
Last week, while walking my dog Pizza to our favorite waterfall, I suddenly started hearing loud pig noises. I stopped and didn’t know if I wanted to keep walking because I realized they were being slaughtered. After a few minutes, the noises stopped, and I knew: Oh, oh. I’m ignorant somewhere in my life – because the pig stands for ignorance in spiritual teachings.
Discussing bureaucratic matters in German was one thing; doing it in English was another, and that’s why I put it off for so long and didn’t take it seriously enough until almost a week ago.
I knew it was time to take care of my visa because I had it in my head that I had to leave the country at the end of April and re-enter. Typical island hopping. But I also knew something wasn’t right, so I finally took care of it at the beginning of April and contacted my agency. “Phew, that doesn’t look good for you,” was my agent’s reply, and an inner feeling of certainty and a “yes, I know” started to spread through me. “Let me talk to our top boss, and I’ll get back to you,” she said, ending our conversation.
Last year, I got a new visa valid for six months. However, I would have had to renew this visa every two months, which I didn’t do. My agency would have helped me remember this, but I had yet to tell my agency I entered Bali, which I didn’t do either. Previously, I had a two-year visa where I didn’t have to worry about anything, and just the thought of sitting in immigration for hours was annoying. Ignorance.
In the meantime, I checked with a few friends and other agencies, and they confirmed that there were really only two options: either get deported from Bali forever or pay a lot of money. Finally, I met with the agency’s top boss and learned he had Indonesia’s best contacts. It’s no secret that the bureaucracy in Indonesia is organized differently than in the Western world, so he offered me the best price while assuring me that I wouldn’t suddenly be arrested at the airport. You never know here.
To shorten the story, I’ll fast forward a little: I spent my last 48 hours at immigration in Lombok and Malaysia. I had to fly to Malaysia for one night to be allowed back into Indonesia. The officers were all very nice to me, and they smiled when they greeted me at the airport in Lombok and put a stamp with a valid visa next to the “deportation” stamp. They already knew through my agent and the other officers, and my honesty made it easier. “How could this happen?” a police officer asked me. “I was ignorant,” was my answer, and he laughed: “We all are sometimes.”
My visa mess quickly made the rounds among my close circle of friends in Bali. My neighbor, curious as he is, called me to find out more. I told him what had happened and made no secret because I wasn’t ashamed of it. On the contrary, I had to bite the bullet and accept the consequences, and I also knew that it wouldn’t happen to me again from now on. But should I fall into despair or negative self-talk now? No. I trust too much that everything happens FOR ME and not AGAINST ME. After all, I messed up, and if I’m honest, I was pretty happy inside, too, because I knew I had the opportunity to pull a big karmic seed that, because of my mindset, would significantly impact my future. Therefore, my lesson’s projection effect on others left me pretty unfazed, and I responded to his statement, “You must be really embarrassed.” With a, “No, I am not. Why?”
I can still remember the scene with a friend of mine. We were standing on the beach in Bali looking out to sea. The sea was calm, and we enjoyed the sunset until I asked him if he believed in reincarnation or past lives. He replied, “No,” Not a minute later, a wave hit him right in the face. I stayed comparatively dry, and we both burst into a big laughter.
Where in your life are you invited to look at your own ignorance? Is it your eating behavior, how you treat Mother Earth, and regularly forgetting to switch off the light when leaving the room? Is it in love? Are you ignorant of your feelings? In your choice of partner? Other perspectives, views, and ways of thinking? Where do you want to avoid taking a closer look? Everything is fine, but we shouldn’t be surprised when our actions or inactions have consequences. Therefore, we are all challenged more than ever to step more into our authentic masculine energy, take responsibility for our choices and actions, and stop pointing fingers at others – no matter what situation we find ourselves in.
The lesson hurt, no question. But I trust in god, and so can you, and I hope I’ve put a smile on your face, too. Even if my budget doesn’t allow for two weeks of luxury on Lombok, I’ll let my soul do that for at least a few days.
It’s your life. Your karma, your destiny, your lessons, and your choices!
Do you for you and live life on your own terms.
Trust in trust, faith in faith. Always.
“To those steadfast in love and devotion, I give spiritual wisdom,
so that they may come to me. Out of compassion I destroy the darkness of their ignorance. From within them I light the lamp of wisdom and dispel all darkness from their lives.”
Krishna
With love, always!
Arabella
