Spirituality aka Connection, Part 2 (The Kool-Aid Man)
I was sitting with a client recently, talking about the scariness that likes to come along with us when we’re making big life changes, and how our mindset and attitude contribute to our experiences. Example: Rather than adopting an anxious or fearful response to a situation, I suggest adopting an exciting approach, a pondering sort of felt sense, such as “I wonder what’s coming next,” or “I wonder who or what is being sent to help me along this path.” That’s when my client casually commented, “This reminds me of the Kool-Aid Man.”
“Oh, Yeah!”
If you aren’t familiar with the Kool-Aid Man, let me explain…
The all-popular kids’ drink, Kool-Aid, has been around since the 1950s, and growing up as a kid in the 1970s and 80s, there were a series of TV commercials that showcased the Kool-Aid Man (person dressed up as a big red pitcher of Kool-Aid) whose sole function upon hearing “Hey, Kool-Aid!”, was to run to the rescue of 2 kids, a boy and a girl, who were hot, thirsty, and tired, to pour them a cup of the drink to quench their thirst. He always responded by busting through a wall of some sort, yelling “Oh, Yeah,” and ran to the kids, singing a ditty.
I recall seeing these ads mainly on Saturday mornings watching cartoons (prime audience), and I have many memories of drinking Kool-Aid as a kid-really it was just sugar and water, and seriously, how many cups of sugar went into the pitcher along with that little packet of powdered Kool-Aid?! It’s probably contributed to our country’s sugar epidemic, no doubt.
I drank a lot of Kool-Aid in my time (Cherry was my favorite), at birthday parties, school functions, and always at VBS, always served with the classic 2 cookies, usually one vanilla and one chocolate, on a napkin.
But this isn’t so much about Kool-Aid as it is about the Kool-Aid Man.
It’s taken me a long time to learn to ask for help and to expect help to come to my aid. Partly due to my own stubborn, independent streak, and partly due to other reasons known to me. When one’s mindset, attitude, and learned values are not in alignment and/or have become counter-productive, e.g., being depressed, being too individualistic in nature, or thinking it’s weak to ask for help, we become emotionally and mentally hot, thirsty, and tired.
Trees know better. Trees thrive in community, sharing their nutrients-sugar and water, across their underground network. Trees will even share with species outside of their own. No discrimination out there. How refreshing.
We humans all need and are all deserving of help. We’re not meant to figure out life all alone.
Open the door of asking and possibilities, don’t keep it shut.
I often suggest to clients to examine if their behavior or actions are indicative of keeping doors open to the light, or locked up, keeping the light out and the darkness in. I’m in the business of busting down doors (or walls, not unlike someone we know 😉).
But mindset is only half of it.
Believing and expecting that the Universe has your back and only wants good things for you is critically important. And this has also taken me a long time to understand and to trust, especially when the world seemingly shows a different story.
I’m not about to try to answer the age-old question of “why do bad things happen to good people”. What I will say is we’ve been gifted with free will. And when someone misuses or abuses this gift, it does affect the rest of us, and we may lean towards viewing the world as ugly or fearful. But although they may try, no one can alter your thoughts or your feelings. You are in charge of that. You are the ultimate arbitrator.
I believe that the Universe is a giver, it doesn’t take back, and it doesn’t break its own law.
Free will is critical for learning. A child who’s enabled or overly controlled may grow up not believing in themself or become a helpless adult.
The Universe, like the Kool-Aid Man, runs to us when we remove the barriers to it. But we must ask for its support.
“Complaining, Justifying, Blaming someone holds you in the place of refusing to let in the things that you’ve been asking for.
Feeling guilty, feeling angry; it is a refusal, not a conscious one.
You’re asking; you can’t help but ask. The Universe is yielding; it must yield.
It’s a big question, folks:
Why aren’t you letting it in?”
— Abraham Hicks (Los Angeles, CA on 3/10/01
It might seem silly to equate the Kool-Aid Man with Spirituality, but for me, he represents the Universal road-side assistance, that could show up in any form, sometime, somewhere. But we have to ask and expect him to arrive.
During your next time of need, or just for fun (remember, the Universe isn’t all serious, it’s playful too), I dare you to yell out, “Hey Kool-Aid!” and wait for the
“Oh, Yeah!”
Til next we meet in the forest…
Love,
Amanda ❤️
Hey, Kool-Aid Man (1975)
