Kobayashi Maru

Day 95

“We can not solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them.”

– Albert Einstein

I experienced a no-win situation yesterday. You know the kind, where you’re caught between a rock and a hard place, and no solution is desirable?

I purchased a service that was highly recommended by someone I know, but the person providing the service turned out to be a total fraud, and wants payment for “the scam.” I  don’t want to pay for the fraudulent experience, and if I tell our mutual acquaintance, he will likely be offended since he obviously believes this person is above board.

On last night’s episode of Quantico, the trainees were given a Kobayashi Maru test. For the non-Trekkies, a Kobayashi Maru is a no-win situation.

Today, a friend told me about a no-win situation she’s facing. She’s in the very unenviable position of deciding between taking her very-hard-to-handle-widowed-mother-in-law in to live with her family, or telling her she’s on her own. Her mother-in-law is very sick, beyond the point where she can manage on her own, and she needs a lot of care. My friend has her hands full with two kids, a full-time job, a husband and not much extra room in her home. Her husband is an only child, so there’s no other siblings to turn to.

There’s something going on here for all these situations to come into my awareness at the same time. Aside from the fact that a post with the title Kobayashi Maru sounds pretty cool,  it’s a sign that I need to write about it. I haven’t made a decision on what to do about my own situation yet, and apparently the Universe wants to help me make a decision.

These situations are called no-win for a reason – no matter which way you go, it’s an impossible choice. So how do you make a decision?

I started thinking about how I’ve handled similar situations in the past. I discovered that I took my fears out of the situation and looked at it from a new perspective. Guided by my greater self, I was able to make the decision that felt right to me with clarity, despite the fallout it may cause.

Of course, there will be fallout out either way by definition, but whenever I’ve chosen the path that best aligned with my inner voice, even if it was the more difficult or riskier option, things worked out. Once I picked my path, I made a conscious choice to accept whatever may come, then I took a huge leap of faith, and believed it would work out for the greatest good of all concerned, despite appearances.

When you can let go of your fears, take a leap of faith and believe that things will be ok, no matter what “reality” looks like, the Universe will respond in kind.

In hindsight, I can tell you that those decisions were the ones that moved me to the next stage of my life, helping me realize whatever goal I was focused on at the time. And the more I think about it, I can see that the Kobayashi Maru presented itself when I was unhappy with my current circumstances, but not willing to make a move.

This time, I’ve chosen to write about my experience with the knowledge that my acquaintance will likely read this post and know what I’m talking about. It’s not the easy choice, but it’s what feels right. Even though I can’t imagine how this situation has anything to do with manifesting my desires right now, I have faith that something good will come from it. And as far as my friend is concerned, I know that even if she chooses the harder path, the Universe will be waiting to shower her with gifts too.

As I said before, when you have a desire, the Universe conspires to make it happen by presenting you with opportunities to realize your goal, and if you sit on the fence for too long and don’t take the opportunities the Universe presents, eventually, the Universe will force the issue with a Kobayashi Maru.

Don’t loose faith, those no-win situations are truly blessings because they beam you up into the next adventure that is necessary to manifest your desire.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!