You are born into this life with the ability to access many different forms of support, assistance and guidance. There are essentially two categories: Internal (non-physical) and External (physical).
Internal support, your IGS or Internal Guidance System, can consist of your intuition, spirit guides like departed loved ones, your future self or parallel selves, your higher power or guardian angels.
Some of these groups have been assigned to you before your birth and act as advocates and supporters that aid in our growth and transformation. Although you may doubt their existence, I am 100% positive that they have reached out to you at least once in your life. Do you consistently see numbers like 11:11 or the date of your birthday when you look at the time? Do synchronicities occur rather frequently in your life? Are your dreams premonitions of future events? Do people show up after you think about them? There are literally thousands of ways our IGS communicates with us. But, if we do not understand its language, the messages are often missed.
Unlike the shadowy language of your IGS, your EGS or External Guidance System speaks a dialect that is familiar to us.
The guides that make up our EGS can be friends, family, coworkers, colleagues, clergy, soulmates, or any other person that is attracted into our lives and at one time or another has played a seemingly critical or non-critical role.
Sometimes these guides remain with us for long periods of time because they play a significant role in our evolution. Conversely, they might appear and disappear very quickly because their purpose was highly specific to a certain time or situation in our lives. No matter, each one of these guides are important for our evolvement and present themselves in our lives when they are most needed for their ability to offer us help, guidance, assistance or support.
Have you ever met someone, and knew right away that you were destined to become friends? Call it a soul connection or realization that you have both known each other in lives past, there is just this feeling of comfort and understanding – you just get each other. Unbeknown to me at the time, 33 years ago (JW, this is my 33rd blog and this is the 33rd year of our friendship – that is the definition of a synchronicity) I met the person that would become one of my closest and dearest friends. And, for the last 33 years we have shared so many of life’s moments together.
Over the years I have had a number of insights into the purpose and depth of our friendship. First, we are guides for each other. There are very, very few (if any) long-term relationships that are self-serving, the majority serve a shared purpose. Second, there are differences in the terms of guidance you receive from “friends” as compared to the guidance you receive from “family.” Since you are tied to family, your freedom of choice is limited, as compared to a friendship, where both are hopefully willing participants. Lastly, one of the many areas that JW has provided guidance is with my understanding and appreciation of “commitment” and the value in committing fully with personal endeavors or relationships.
Here is a quick story…
When he was just 35 in 1966, Junior Johnson told Big Bill France at NASCAR that he was done racing. At breakfast soon thereafter, France told the one-time moonshine runner that he couldn’t just quit. “You’re committed to racing,” France pleaded. “No, I’m not,” Junior replied. “Yeah, you are,” France shot back. Junior shook his head and looked down at the eggs and bacon. “That chicken was involved in this breakfast,” he said. “That hog was committed. I’m not committed.” “Then Junior Said to Jeff … “The Best NASCAR Stories Ever Told, David Poole and James McLaurin, Triumph Books/182 pages
This story exemplified my approach to many endeavors and relationships in my life growing up; I was “involved” a lot, but “committed” infrequently. Perhaps I had felt that by committing fully, I put myself in a vulnerable position. JW’s approach to personal endeavors and relationships couldn’t be more contrasted and have been HOG like. By this, I mean that when someone or something resonates with him, he commits fully. From family, employees, friends, children’s athletic and social endeavors and the many causes and associations that he has pledged his money and time to support, JW’s conviction to commitment, expressed through his actions and behavior, have afforded profound guidance. And, as the years of our friendship have continued to evolve and strengthen, couldn’t help but impact my life in many positive ways.