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1We’re spending this week with a friend, sailing the San Juan Islands of the Pacific Northwest. We’ve never been here before and the scenery is stunningly beautiful. My husband and I are enjoying a great week. One of our intentions for this week was to do some brainstorming for InspireMeToday.com, but very little of that has happened so far.

Just before I left to come up here I was interviewing one of our Inspirational Luminaries. I asked them to discuss change and how that can affect our lives. This Luminary shared that one thing they’ve learned is that if you have problems because of your beliefs, you tend to take those problems with you- whether it’s moving to a new city or into a new relationship- until you change the attitude that created them. If you don’t make the change on the inside, they’ll keep showing up on the outside.

I thought about that when we got up here to the San Juans. Remember my jellyfish on our trip to the BVI last month? Well, it seems the islands here are plagued with them too. We thought the only jellyfish we’d have to worry about were in warm water. The water temperature here is barely above 50 degrees, so my theory that they love warm water is obviously incorrect. And I thought there were a lot of jellyfish in the Caribbean, but there are more here than I’ve ever seen. They are shimmery white and about the size of a small plate. It looks like God just emptied his china closet into the ocean. They are covering the area, not more than a foot apart from one another.

So, what is it with jellyfish? What are they here to teach me? I believe we notice different things in our life for a reason. Lately it seems mine are jellyfish.

Instead of having a productive time brainstorming InspireMeToday.com, it seems we’ve spent most of our time dealing with what I call “the yucky stuff of life” that has to be handled. In our case it’s two rental properties in Las Vegas that are upside down- meaning more expenses than income. Thinking about stuff like this is like imagining myself swimming through jellyfish- yuck. But we all have yucky stuff. I keep telling myself to just get over it.

It’s not important whether or not we have yucky stuff in our life, it’s important how we deal with it and how we allow it to affect our day. Instead of being afraid of these jellyfish I’m noticing their incredible beauty. I’m certain these jellyfish are an important part of the web of life or they wouldn’t be here. And in that realization, I know that MY yucky stuff is also a part of my web. It has a purpose in my life or it too wouldn’t be here. From every situation we can find the beauty.

Yesterday, as I realized my next blog was about jellyfish, Darryl found the largest and most beautiful jellyfish I’ve ever seen. It was almost 2 feet in diameter and looked just like a giant flower- deep orange with what appeared to be petals. We were moored at a dock as it went swimming past us very slowly. We were both mesmerized by the sheer beauty of this creature. I’ve never seen anything like it. (Check out the photo).

I tend to take things in all day and process them at night. Around 2am last night, I woke up and wrote this in my journal- “Vegas is a jellyfish”. I realized the upside down properties are nothing to be afraid of, for in that situation, there too is beauty. They are my personal giant flower jellyfish. If I can find a way to turn my perception from being frightened of them or avoiding them, then I can find the beauty in the situation. With that realization came a great peace. I don’t have to be afraid of the situation. I know that it too has a purpose and even if I don’t know what it is, I’ll find the beauty in the situation if I look closely.

What are the jellyfish in your life? I’m off to go find more jellyfish today and see what I can learn from them. I’ll keep you posted. ☺

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Gail Lynne Goodwin is the founder of InspireMeToday.com, bringing the best inspiration to the world. InspireMeToday.com provides free inspiration, each day from a new Inspirational Luminary, to a global community of folks from over 150 countries. Gail has interviewed many well-known names including Sir Richard Branson, Guy Laliberte, Seth Godin, Tony Hseih, Gary Vaynerchuk, Michael Gerber, Marci Shimoff, Jack Canfield and hundreds more. According to Mashable, Gail was one of 2009's Top 25 Most Inspirational People on Twitter.

Prior to InspireMeToday.com, Gail spent several years as manager for her recording artist daughter, Carly. As a result of the success of their co-penned song, "Baby Come Back Home", Gail accompanied her daughter to bases in the US and to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba where Carly performed for our troops. Gail and Carly created the 'World's Longest Letter' of love and support and delivered the 18-mile long scroll on a month-long tour of Iraq and the Persian Gulf in 2006.

Gail is excited to present her latest course, Love in 21 Days, a step-by-step guide to finding love online. Love in 21 Days is founded on a logical process that has been tested - and proven! - by not only Gail, but also by students around the world who too have found love.

Gail is a published author and a regular writer for the Huffington Post. She offers mentoring and mastermind services to clients worldwide from her home in Whitefish, Montana. Follow Gail on Twitter or Google+.

This Post Has 6 Comments

  1. Hi Gail,

    What a great metaphor! I always make a point to look at those yucky situations as blessings in disguise. It’s also a reminder to be grateful for what I do have. Focusing on yucky things attracts more of the same.

  2. Thank you, Gail!

    You are appreciated for leaving me a message (@ZnaTrainer) on Twitter
    and for this invitation to realize what an inspiration you are in your blog!

    This is a great allegory, with your story of your life’s challenges seen as
    something beautiful, wonderful, as the jellyfish you photographed here.

    We all have our challenges which optimize our opportunities for growth.

    Once we focus on how truly blessed we are, we can incorporate those things
    which take thought, consideration, planning, and strategies. Once we’re
    really stretching our imagination and creativity, reaching out to others for
    help, we are truly growing beyond where we’ve been. It’s a stepping stone
    to learning and growth, irrespective of how seemingly impossible some
    situations may become. We’re more developed in character and experience,
    resulting from these “jellyfish” learning and growth opportunities. We expand!

    Let me know how best to serve you, Gail, and your growing community in a
    wealth of experiential expanding of your own best horizons in wealth and health!

    To your best abundance of blessings of wealth and health and happiness, Gail, I am

    Respectfully, your devoted friend,

    Zna “Trainer” @ZnaTrainer (Twitter)
    ourselves to become smarter, more patient, more empathetic and understanding.

  3. THANK YOU FOR THAT WONDERFUL STORY
    So well put about the jellyfish–yuckiness is just like stepping in doo-doo! LOL, I have to say they are blessings as it takes us out of our own busy-ness and into another way of seeing things; a new perspective is always good, n’est-ce-pas?
    By the way, I received this story through a newsletter I get and read pretty religiously as he is a good writer, on todays inspiration, 9-11-08, Mark David Gerson. He compares himself to a fool in the tarot deck; sometimes we need to look at things upside down to get a different view of life. His last line is a gem, “Trust in your innate wisdom, your limitless courage and your infinite potential. Don’t let convention or your perceived limitations fence you in. Trust…leap…and surrender!” ~ Mark David Gerson

  4. I am a painter of jellyfish! I am such a cerebral type that I am drawn to their “go with the flow” that is so contrary to my (still evolving) personality. My EBay store is Eyecandy original art by Stephanie. They inspire me in their beautiful yet lethal way.

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