To be the Ball is to realize our true nature; that is, to relax into the Master Bowler's Hand and allow ourselves to cooperate with whatever spin the Master puts on our course down the Lane. The Master Bowler sees the Pins we cannot; The Master knows the score in the frames of our life better than we do. It may seem as though you are destined for the Gutter, but by trusting in the Master's skill and greater vision you will find yourself curving back towards the Lead Pin and slamming boldly and confidently exactly where you need to be to execute a Perfect Strike.
How do we learn to have such trust in the Master Bowler? The first step is to see the value in letting our course down the Lane be guided by a higher skill and mastery than we can ever have. The Master Bowler desires only Strikes for each one of us, but it is our resistance which causes all the Spares and Gutterballs we suffer through. One cannot be blamed for not believing in the Master Bowler or the blessing of having such guidance and freedom from worry, doubt, and fear. We are not born knowing this, but only through the practice of Bowling can we discover a higher presence; a presence that puts to rest our questions of being alone and unloved in a vast universe.
When we learn to live in concert with the Master's greater skill, life becomes less a seemingly unconnected series of events and more a subtle interplay of daily frames played in a cosmic Alley. You will come to know when you are in the Master's Hand preparing for another trip down the Lane, when you are in motion down the Lane, subject to the desire of the Master Bowler for you to have a Strike and your desire for control, and when you are crashing into the Pins. Then the Ball Return will send you once more to the Master's Hand, where the whole process begins again.
Looking around, you may come to believe that the Master plays favorites; there seem to be those who are more successful with much less effort than you. This is an illusion. The Master Bowler loves each one of us, flaws and all. We are all Balls made to fit a purpose. Some are for Strikes, some are for picking up Spares. Each one of us is useful. To measure youself against another is to invite the influence of one or more of the Pins of Life into your life (see "The 10 Pins Of Life"). See others as the Master sees them; perfect in their own way and at their own time. Letting go of your comparisons frees you to become aware of the beauty and intricacy of the Master's higher Game.
|
