Back to Article index To print this page, click on the Print icon in your browser.    Lessons of the Sand Dollar   I've shared with you some of my spiritual journey. For me, this path consciously started with the death of my father though at that time I didn't even realize I was on a new fork on my path. I turned away from traditional Judaism, it was not "feeding my soul" and was not providing answers I was seeking. I began to look elsewhere.   I avoided meditation. I still have difficulty quieting my mind and always thought there was a "right" way to meditate (and, of course, a "wrong" way). Since I couldn't meditate the "right" way, I didn't. Journaling was out. Again, there was a right way and a wrong way. I continued to ask for guidance and was increasingly frustrated by not getting any. I had no clue what I was asking for so I didn't recognize the answers when they came.   In 1996, I went on my first spiritual retreat strongly encouraged by my own coach. I spent a weekend on the beach in San Diego, alone, either walking or just standing and noticing the world around me. The first few days I spent experiencing and feeling. By my third day I was ready for more. Walking the beach I noticed many broken sand dollars. I said a silent prayer asking for a whole, unbroken sand dollar. Two steps farther along the beach, there it was. I was overwhelmed and powerfully moved. I felt this as a message of support for the path I was walking.   Nine months later I returned to the beaches of San Diego. I was on a different beach and my ritual was the same. I needed to feel part of the Universe and know I was supported. I saw many shells as I walked the beach and made the same request as before: I wanted to find a sand dollar as proof of my place in the world. A few steps ahead, there was the answer to my silent prayer. . . my sand dollar. I stopped, said a prayer of gratitude and continued my walk. After a few more steps, there was another one! As I picked it up I began to cry and I stood on the beach allowing the emotion to wash over me as the waves washed over the sands of the beach.   For most people this would be enough. Never being one to settle and always looking for more I went on another retreat just last month. After the recent storms off the California coast, there were lots of shells on the beach and, yes, lots of broken sand dollars. My first two days I made my usual request. Nothing! So I changed the request. "Okay. If I can't have another sand dollar send me anything so I know you're with me!" Before I left the beach that night what I got were words in my head: "The first time you asked you got a sand dollar. The second time you got not one, you got two sand dollars! What more do you need? You know you're supported! You've been shown! Shut up and listen!"   Trust and surrender are the two big lessons I've been living with recently so this message on the beach wasn't a big surprise. Trust the process and surrender to the energy. My husband was with me on this retreat and as I shared my experience over dinner it became more real and felt more right. Trust and surrender.   The next morning on my ritual walk I asked for nothing and was graced with hundreds of sand dollars. I said my prayer of thanks and gratitude and appreciated every single sand dollar I walked past or picked up.   Why am I sharing this experience with you? Three reasons: First, I'm sure I'm not the only one who's asked for guidance and not been able to recognize the guidance when it came. What I know now is guidance comes in many ways and it's up to us to be aware, attentive and prepared to hear. We won't always get the answers we want. It's up to us to honor the guidance no matter what.   Second, I ask you to be witness to my continuing spiritual awakening. I'm pretty bottom-line oriented. I never believed spirituality had a place in business or in mainstream living. I was mistaken! It has a place in everything we do. Our spiritual well-being depends on us being willing to walk the spiritual path, to be open to new experiences and to share our experiences so we can all grow and benefit from the lessons.   Finally, through my writings, you are witness to my growth and my stepping into trust through surrender. We all need witnesses to share the experience. I am blessed to have many people able and willing to witness my growth. As witnesses, they listen to my experiences without judgement or comment. They just listen and are there for me. They observe. We (you) need this on the path.   The lessons of the sand dollar are about trust and surrender – from my first experience to my most recent one. Trust the process and surrender to the energy, the flow! How different could your life be if you learned the lessons of the sand dollar – trust and surrender?   © Copyright May, 1998. Laura Hess, MCC 702.252.3657