I happened to come across this post, thanks to a colleague of mine who also wrote about it, written by JessicaRedfield, one of the victims in the Aurora, CO, theater shooting. She not only narrowly missed being killed during a mall shooting just over a month before she was shot but continued to harbor a strange feeling…a premonition.
Did she not listen the next time…before she entered the movie theater? Did her intuition not kick in? Or was it just her time?
Her story reminded me of the importance of listening to our intuition.
Do you wonder? What would happen if you trusted every gut feeling, every small voice in your head… Would it mean the difference between life and death? If you turned right instead of left, ate at that restaurant instead of the other, stayed home instead of going out.
So many times when I’m driving the curvy mountain roads where I live I suddenly think to tell my husband to watch for deer–sometimes I sit in the car without saying a word. I know that saying something will alert him to the possibility of a deer running out into the road. And I often wonder if the thought doesn’t cross my mind because a deer is nearby. So, far, that hasn’t happened…but I wonder all the same.
I have a friend who wasn’t killed on 9/11 because he stayed home to have breakfast with his son. I wonder what he thinks about that decision? Why on that day above all others? Was it intuition? A premonition?
And what if you made that call just when you thought about it, wrote that letter and sent it when your intuition told you to do so, spoke to that man or woman when you felt the gentle, but unexplained urge to do so? Might it change your life?
What do you feel? How do you sense your intuition so you can listen–and respond? A small flitter in your stomach? A weight on your shoulders? A voice in your head? The twinge of excitement?
Do you have premonitions?
Let me know.
Hi Nina:
Your blog posts are generally right on cue. I always take away something reading your blog posts, but unfortunately, not with this one. I think this blog posts confuses natural instincts (what you define as intuition or gut feeling) with inspiration to do something. I seem them both as distinct things.
To me, a natural instinct is nature’s way of telling us what we should do or how we should react. Example: I am a mother, and despite what doctors say, I feel that I have natural instincts to know when my child is sick.
Inspiration, by contrast, is a series of pleasant thoughts or ideas that come rushing to my head after seeing, watching, or reading about something interesting. These days, I am mostly inspired to write blog posts for my two blogs.
Amanda,
I think you misread the post. I never mention inspiration, only intuition, which is different. Intuition is a gut feeling, a message sent from Source or spirit or soul. You mention instinct. Instinct is something we do instinctually…without even thinking; we are almost programmed to do it. Intuition is information or knowledge from a higher source that we sometimes notice and sometimes don’t but always have access to; we are always getting these messages but we don’t always act upon them.
Hi Nina:
Thanks for the quick reply. My original comments were based on words you wrote. Here are the specific quotes:
In the paragraph that begins Do you wonder: “What would happen if you trusted every gut instinct…”
In the paragraph that begins And what if you made: “…wrote that letter and sent it when the inspiration hit…”
Because I read the words “gut instinct” and “inspiration” in a blog post that was dedicated to “intuition,” I read this blog post as having mixed up the definitions, and that is why it did not work for me.
Ah….my mistake (in writing). I’ve changed those words so as not to confuse! Thank you. :~)
My great pleasure, Nina. Every writer has his / her off days. I’m a pretty good proofer, having ben lauded for my typo-catching skills 😉
Keep the writing coming!
Ha ha… Don’t mind my two typos just now… “ben” instead of “been” and “seem” instead of “see” ha ha…
Nina,
I have counted on listening to my intuition throughout my life. Whether I act on it or not depends on how strong it is.
It may be tough to explain it to others, but what’s important is recognizing when it requires immediate action.
Listening to intuition hinges on learning to know and trust yourself. Thankfully I now depend on it.
Thanks for reminding us of this important guidance tool.