Article Hub.net

Feel welcome to publish this article on any place you want
but you may NOT change anything in the box below.

<h3>Tipping the Universe</h3>
 
Tipping the Universe 
 
 
\"If I were any better, I\'d be giving out cash!\" 
 
	Years ago, I remember running across a man, I do not even remember his name, but I do remember how he answered the following question. \"How are you doing?\" \"If I were any better, I would be giving away cash.\" he would reply. What a concept, I loved it. I have not heard as good a response as this to this day. Every time anyone would ask his reply was always the same. 
 
	Time went by and I could not get this phrase out of my mind. I started to think, if he were doing better would he really give out cash? How much cash would he give out? In what denomination? To whom would he bestow this monetary treat? These questions and more plagued my mind. 
 
\"How are you?\" is one of the most often asked and insincerely answered questions in life. This is understandable, we do not always answer with the thoughts that are going through our minds. Society might be pretty scary if we did. We are instead relegated to more generic responses that just give a snapshot of our mood. Some of these replies include: Good, Fine, OK, Great, Tired, Wonderful and the like. 
 
The Experiment 
 
	Somewhere along the course of thinking about this, I made a conscious decision to plan a new answer. Anytime someone asked, \"How are you doing?\" I would reply, \"If I were any better, I would be handing out cash.\" I started to immediately love the reactions I was receiving. Many people responded in the following way, \"When you get a little better, why not throw some of that money my way.\" 
 
Everyone seemed to be enchanted with the idea of someone giving money away. I was amazed that my high school sweetheart would take her holiday and birthday money and go to New York City and hand it out to other people. She loved the feeling that she received from giving it away as much as the people liked receiving it. 
 
	What would happen if I actually started giving money away? 
 
	The thought is absurd, that is part of what makes it so attractive. There were many variables to be considered: how, where, to whom, how much? Should it be done anonymously? When should I give the money away? 
 
	Although these questions intrigued me, I was still on the fence. I am was in debt with school loans, credit cards, a computer, and more. Can I really justify giving money away? I had always heard of tithing to religious organizations. Many businesses give away large sums of money on a regular basis to foundations and charity. Certainly, the idea of giving wasn\'t new. 
	 
	Even though the idea of giving wasn\'t new, the idea of me giving money away was. I even considered the idea of giving money away when I didn\'t feel like it. To go one step even further, I thought it probably more important to give away money when I did not feel like it. 
 
	I remember reading stories of people giving away money when they were feeling broke, and some fantastic tale of even more money coming into thier life as a result of it. Was I willing to put my money where my mouth was, or at least where my thoughts were. 
	 
Taking the $1 Leap 
 
	A college roommate of mine once received a ticket for parking in the wrong spot behind my apartment. He created clarity in the situation by proclaiming that he did not receive a fine, but rather had the opportunity to make a donation to the town for everything it had done for him. He looked at it as giving the town a bonus out of gratitude. Wow! Isn\'t that a wonderful place to be in. Parking fines becoming donations of gratitude. I now imagine him joyfully paying his taxes! 
 
	Years passed as these thoughts flooded through my mind. I could not shake the idea that I wanted to give away money, not really to anyone, but maybe to the universe in general. That\'s it! I can get comfortable with the idea of tipping the universe for how good it has been to me. If my former roommate could pay a parking ticket with gratitude, surely I could actually start throwing money around on the streets. 
	 
I decided to start with one dollar. I also decided that the act had to be done without anyone knowing it in order for it to count. I do not remember the first time I did it, however, I still remember the feeling associated with it. In my mind, I had pictured people stopping me and saying excuse me sir, I think you dropped this money. To this day, no one has caught me doing this. If they have, they did not stop me to tell me about it. So one day, I took one dollar out of my wallet, looked around to see if anyone was looking and let it fall to the ground, releasing it to the universe. In my mind I was tipping the universe for all of the good it has given me. 
	 
I do not know why, but I really had a problem with doing this, at least the first time. Something about letting it go , and not knowing where it would end up made me reluctant. The feeling that came afterword was wonderful. I noticed that I felt more alive and even more grateful after doing it. 
 
 
Freedom Through Release 
 
	I have since graduated from that initial feeling of hesitance to letting more money pass through my hands and into the universe. I love the thought of money floating around in the universe and finding just the right person at just the right time. 
	Have you ever found money in the street? Do you know someone who has? How much was it? How did it make you feel? If you have I bet you felt pretty good. 
 
	There is a story about a man who killed himself by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge in the 1970s. Afterward, note was found in his apartment that said, \"I\'m going to walk to the bridge. If one person smiles at me on the way, I will not jump.\" I cannot imagine what must have been going through his mind on that day. But what if one person did smile at him that day? Is it possible that he would still be alive to tell a power tale of human connection? 
 
	I have always been fascinated by stories of human interaction and serendipity. They have been a monumental part of my life and I am interested in how this wonderful tale of life is woven together with stories of hope, luck, and coincidence. 
	 
I feel that tipping the universe is a way to allow another the opportunity to find a bit of luck in their lives. I see the money I release into the world falling into someone\'s hands at just the right time and changing their lives. Perhaps giving hope in an otherwise dreary day. Perhaps someone finding the money is a \"smile\" from the universe that comes at just the right time. 
 
From Lack to Abundance 
 
	It has no become commonplace for me to leave money at different places with the intention of improving the universe. I trust that in our scarcity based society, the small bills find their way to the people who need it the most. 
 
	Whenever I find myself feeling apprehensive about finances in my life, I will use this game to change my perception of the world I am creating. Every time I tip the universe, I feel less worried about money in my life. It is a powerful statement to the world that I have been always taken care of, I always have more than enough, and I trust that I will continue to receive everything that I need. 
 
	It is a hobby of mine to buy homes in a state of disrepair and fix them up to become homes for people to live in. I first did this three years ago, when I purchased a HUD repossession from the government. I was not sure I would be able to afford it, and sometimes I still wonder how I pulled it off. 
 
I did buy the house with no money down and rehabbed it from floor to ceiling and made a lovely home for myself. When I brought my friends to see the home, they were nice enough to be optimistic prior to the rehab. By all means what was on the surface was ugly and not a place that you would have your worst enemy live in. But time, a little money, and a great deal of sweat equity later made a fine home for me to live in. I recently helped move my brother and his fiancé into that very same house. 
	 
About a year ago, I decided to move closer to my work. Long hours at a job that allowed me to live my passion started taking its toll on me. The extra forty-five minutes to one hour of time I could get would allow me to exercise, or read, or catch up on some much needed sleep. This coupled with the fact that I was doing graduate work at a University near my job led me to start looking for homes on the ten-minute ride between my job and the University. 
 
	For six months I looked and looked. I was every realtor\'s nightmare. I would scour the internet and find the least expensive houses in the area, only to go look at them and see that they needed more work than I thought, or that they were not in an area that I wanted to live. I was level jumping. The area where I bought my first home was nice, but homes in this new area were $50k-$150k more than what I paid for my first home. I remember one house I looked at. I walked in the front door only to find that there was NO ceiling in the home. There was a roof but when you looked up from the ground floor, you saw straight through the rafters to the roof. It was that very same house that I walked into the basement, only to fall through the rotted steps into a puddle of water. 
	 
I kept on looking and driving my realtor crazy until one day I found a duplex that needed some serious work. I was concerned about having to sell house number one before buying house number two. A meeting with my mortgage broker convinced me that by renting half of the duplex, I could afford both houses while I did the work to rent out the other unit. I liked this new property, the location was perfect but I wasn\'t sure if I could pull off the financial end of the deal. I was losing sleep at night trying to run all of the numbers in my head. My mind raced with thoughts of lack. 
	 
I thought this would be a good time to practice tipping the universe. I knew the concept worked when I felt grateful. But would this process work to help create feelings of gratitude? Prior to this time, I had never left more than dollar bills when I was tipping the universe. I decided that since this was a pretty big deal in my life that I would release fives and tens and see what happened. 
 
	The morning I drove to sign the mortgage application, I dropped a five and a ten a local convincing store when I stopped for my morning coffee. Just two weeks later, I received my final mortgage approval. House number one was appraised for more than I ever would have imagined. This gave me the ability to buy and rehab house number two. 
	 
Throughout the process, anytime I felt feelings of lack, want, or need, I would tip the universe in advance, knowing that it would work out. I couldn\'t believe that this was working and I have no way to prove that this actually does work, but I knew I felt better as a result of releasing this money into the universe. 
	 
	Anyone who has ever been approved for one mortgage, let alone two at the same time, knows that the process is almost too much too bear. One week before my closing on the new house, I was told that there was a problem with the money in my savings account. It had not been there long enough to count as reserve money. Apperently, this money needs to be in your account for at least two months in order to count. This was it. Despite my best efforts at checking and double checking my finances, I was going to lose this house all because of a technicality. Once again, I tipped the universe in advance in thanks for it all working out. It was as if by releasing small amounts of money, I was able to free my intention to everything working out. It turned my thoughts from lack and fear to giving and abundance. As it turns out, I was able to look at my other accounts and I came up with enough reserves, to the dollar, in order for the company to consider me a good risk. 
 
	As I write these lines, I am sitting on my deck of house number two, enjoying a cup of iced green tea, wondering why I ever doubted in the first place. Both houses have been occupied by wonderful tenants. I had my first tenant before my first mortgage payment was due. I live in an apartment above house number two. Trusting that this house was the right move for me was a great decision. It was such a good decision that the equity created in the home (more than twice my yearly salary) has given me the confidence to leave my full time job and pursue other interests. 
 
A Chance Meeting? 
 
	Does Tipping the Universe Really Work? Who cares! I like the results I get and the feelings that are associated with the action of releasing. A few months ago, I was in my public school job and it was career day. As I walked through the halls on my way to make sure the students did not eat the presenters alive, I ran into a familiar face. Evan was an acquaintance I had met through mutual friends years earlier. We had only met a few times in passing. Seeing him again was a jolt of positive energy. 
	 
Of the forty speakers listed for presentations that day, I would only have the opportunity to see three of them. If you guessed that Evan was scheduled for the room I was monitoring, you guessed right! As Evan started speaking the room came alive with energy. Smiles lit up the faces of the children and I found myself laughing along with them at this charismatic presenter. 
	 
I had been having a difficult time with the politics of my job recently, and had even been considering leaving. As Evan spoke, I found myself finding someone who was following their dream. He owns his own company running executive retreats. He described his job as teaching adults to learn how to bring play into work. What a great job I thought. 
	 
I was struggling with my own issues at the time. I loved my job, I loved the students, I loved teaching choral music, but I wasn\'t sure if I was missing out on something more. I felt that going to the same place everyday was holding me back from doing more. Teaching is a noble profession, but being a music teacher was a dream that was fifteen years old for me. Perhaps it was time for a new dream. 
	 
Could I be spending my time doing more? Could I make more money with less work? I had just proved to myself that I could make double my yearly teaching salary in one month by rehabbing houses. Could I be serving more people better by working for myself? Were their dreams inside me still waiting to be fulfilled? Was my life so busy with the day to day grind of teaching that I could not even hear what these dreams were saying to me? These were all questions I needed to answer for myself. 
	 
Evan agreed to meet me after his talk. I expressed interest in his work, but also in his way of life. He spoke of working less to spend more time with the people he loved. He spoke of working smarter not harder. He also spoke of wanting to make a movie about chance coincidences like the one we experienced. When those words came out of his mouth, my life changed. 
 
Transitions 
 
	Since our meeting at my school several months have passed. A great deal has transpired in that time. I created an online gratitude list that I use daily to record all of the things that I am grateful for. I have developed a group of interactive educational inservices for teachers with my brother, who recently left public school teaching. I am developing a free birthday card greeting with a new birthday song I composed. Evan and I have met many times and have started working on a movie that explores the chance meetings of people that change our lives. I have co-authored an interactive drama that pokes fun at office-life and workplace drama. Plans are also in the works for a book entitled , \"So You\'re Passionate About Everything ... Now What?\" 
	 
With all of these exciting projects in my life, I have resigned from my full time teaching job. I will miss many of the relationships that I built there over the past five years. Somehow, I know that it was time to close one chapter of my life and start another. I have no definite plan or particular way that I need things to work out. 
	 
There are times of course, when I do experience fear and doubts about that decision. When I do I reach for my wallet deciding that I need to tip the universe in advance for all of the good things it has in store for me. 
Lunch 
	 
Evan and I had lunch last week to discuss plans for our new work Everyday Angels the Movie. Picture a warm summer day, a wonderful sidewalk bistro, meeting wonderful new friends, celebrating new ideas, not to mention wonderful food and drink. However, the best part of the lunch was a walk that we took afterward. When we were on our way back to our cars, Evan and I decided to practice tipping the universe together. We both searched our pockets for money and decided to drop money all the way back to our cars. I have no idea how much money we released into the universe. I can only imagine later that day, someone finding one of the bills. We laughed the entire time. How much fun we had releasing the money into the universe. 
	 
We spoke earlier today and Evan prompted me to tip the universe as we were talking on the phone. We just took money from our wallets and let it go wherever we were. What a rush. We spoke of plans of tipping the universe on a larger scale. How many people could we convince to do this with us? How much money could we release in a single hour? What if we did this in a moving vehicle? What if we could convince everyone who had money to do this once on the same day? 
	 
It is possible that the hope, faith and trust that comes along with tipping the universe has the potential to tip the very universe itself. 
 
Rules for tipping the universe: 
 
1. Any amount of money will do, but bills are better in that they can blow around and travel farther. 
2. No one, other than the people you are doing this, is to see you doing this. It is anonymous. 
	3. Set an intention for more abundance in your life prior to releasing the money. 
	4. Notice the feelings of abundance after you release the money. 
	5. Notice any other feelings that arise during the process. 
	6. Repeat as necessary. 
 
Conclusion 
 
	If you are ever walking in the street and you see money floating around, pick it up and think if someone was tipping the universe. If it has been a while and you have not seen any, think about tipping the universe yourself and making someone else\'s day. If you see someone, slyly drop money somewhere it just may be an everyday angel tipping the universe by tipping the universe.	 
	 
As we travel on this journey together let us all take time to enjoy ourselves more. Let us be more grateful for what we already have. Let us be more grateful for the people in our lives who have changed us in some way. 
 
Namaste! 
Author Info
 
Michael Trotta 
Article Source: <a href="http://www.articlehub.net">Article Hub.net</a>

Back to main article

External

Categories

Sponsors

Other stuff