My Friend Pete

Trevor HendyThoughts14 Comments

I am writing this only a couple of weeks after the passing of Dr Wayne Dyer. If you don’t know who Wayne is, he is regarded by many as the father of motivation. He was an educated man who came to understand the connections between Soul, Mind and Body. First he came to realize the connection between Body and Mind and then ultimately realized it is all to do with Soul.

His books have been at the top of the Best Seller lists for years and he is one of those great authors who truly brought massive numbers to the self-help section of the bookstore before they had even worked out that it was a section. In short, he was an incredible man who gave us an incredible gift, many in fact. His books, tapes, cd’s, lectures, workshops and later movies have effected so many in the most wonderful of ways and will continue to do for a long time. Long live Wayne Dyer.

I am reminded of a saying that my great teacher, Colin, used to say, “life is a continuum”. This implies that life goes on and when there are new beginnings, they simply start off where the old left off. It is once more over to us to continue the work of great men and women like Mother Theresa, Princess Di, John Denver, Wayne Dyer, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandella and Colin, to name just a few.

I will get to my friend Pete in a minute but first I wanted to paint a picture of Wayne, so you can understand just whom Pete is and what he is about.

Wayne tells a story about when he was a young boy, a foster child, that had bounced from home to home occasionally finding security but often having it pulled out from under him again. He came home one day and asked his foster mum at the time, “what is a scurvy elephant?” She didn’t know what he meant and asked him so. He said, “I want to know what a scurvy elephant is”. Upon further enquiry he revealed that his teacher had called him a “scurvy elephant”.

Wayne’s Mum decided to go down to the school and face the teacher and get to the bottom of this. She asked “what is a scurvy elephant?” and the teacher replied, “ I don’t know what you are talking about”.

Wayne’s mum then said, “well you called my son a scurvy elephant”, to which the teacher replied, “oh, no I didn’t, I called him a disturbing element”. She then stated that is what Wayne does, he gets things mixed up. You see, to the teacher, Wayne was a disturbing element; he disrupted things, particularly the status quo. He always asked questions why and would just accept the way it was “supposed” to be. His mother, loving Wayne very much for his free thinking, went home and encouraged him to continue being a scurvy elephant and he became one of the great forward thinkers and feelers of our time.

You see, to truly make a difference to yourself, your family and the world around you, you have to be willing to be a disturbing element, you have to break the status quo, particularly those elements based in limited truth, to arrive at a better place where everyone can win, be happy and be healthy.

Often if and when you do start speaking about this stuff, you are not only met with a little resistance to what you are doing or saying, you can also be met with absolute attacks on who you are and what you are about, most of which are way off track. The resistance that lies hidden behind the status quo, suddenly rises up and sees you as a threat to it’s comfort and perhaps it’s unquestioned and uninterrupted reign.

At one level, this resistance is upsetting at another level it is just par for the course and part of being a truth speaker and seeker, you learn from it and you become better at bridging and not talking it personally, knowing that you have just stirred up some untruth.

From my own experience, the further you go along the track and trust the truth you have stumbled upon, the more comfortable and less confrontational you become with it and the more people become ready to listen. However as more people listen, you once again become a bit of a threat to anyone who has a mass investment in the people not listening to what you say. That is often when you know you are onto the truth, as it really kicks up a stink. You see, that is where my friend Pete comes in.

You may have heard of my friend Pete before, he is well known chef Pete Evans. He is also the man behind the “Paleo Way” tribe and it’s push towards a happier, healthier, more longer living future for all of us. His original understanding of the concepts behind the Paleo Way was something he stumbled upon in his own search to be happier and healthier.

Perhaps you have heard that saying, “the truth doesn’t need defending”.   When I see an argument between two people or parties that is not resolving, I often look to which one is defending it’s position the hardest, that is usually the best place to start to see where the true issue lies. Of course at the end of the day, both sides can always learn from a conflict, but usually we die at the hands of the thought “I am not changing unless they do”, so we withdraw, get disgruntled and so it continues.

The other aspect of a fight not resolving is that there is often an unseen or unacknowledged third party stirring the argument up. We see this a lot these days with trolls on the internet. They will often start an argument on a post and then leave it to brew between those that took it personally. They are very much unseen because in most cases their username gives absolutely no clue to who they are. They often take unhealthy delight in knowing they have the power to insight violence, upset and hatred, just with a few words. Perhaps they feel they have no power anywhere else.

It takes a lot more courage to speak your truth in public when everyone knows where you live, where to find you and who you actually are and particularly when you open yourself up to feedback. It’s surprising but there are still a lot of people that would actually prefer to hide behind anonymity and be that unseen third party that stirs the argument than to actually take their power and stand for something they truly believe in, perhaps something that would benefit everyone. One is fairly gutless, the other is fairly courageous.

When it comes to unseen third parties stirring the argument, there are sometimes bigger fish playing that game, the ones that benefit from the status quo remaining in place and that may also benefit from the breakup that ensues once an argument is started.

In a relationship situation, that unseen third party could be your “best friend” who doesn’t like your partner and wants to spend more time with you or even own your thoughts and feelings, doesn’t like you spending extra time with them. It could also be the guy or girl that you are flirting with and who is saying all the right things to you to keep you on side, when your partner seems to be saying all of the upsetting wrong things. That really means your partner is trying to hold you to account and speaking a bit of truth that you don’t like but that is another story. It could also be the person at work who has got you on side with them without you even knowing that they are using you for a bigger game or gain, fuelling an “us against them”.

All this is actually happening on an “almost entirely” unconscious level. Often people don’t even realize the impact of what they are doing, as the unconscious ego inside of them is clinging to it’s life and it’s identity and won’t go down without a fight, even if the person who is carrying the ego around, dies in the process.

Back to my friend Pete. This is a man that has decided to speak his truth, the truth that he has stumbled on as he has pursued his own freedom. He loved what he found and now lives to share it. He is gathering a wealth of testimonials and people who are loving and benefiting from what he is revealing and teaching. He is also very aware that food is only the start point of the conversation.

When you are free to debate the true health and wealth of the food we eat, you also become empowered to discuss and debate the truth of anything else you wish to question in life, particularly when it comes to what we have been told or taught “we have to do” to be good citizens.

There is a lot of truth arising on the planet right now, thanks to the internet, people are able to share all sorts of things and realizing there are many wonderful viewpoints that can be helpful right across life. Dare I say, something beautiful is arising, true understanding, awareness, presence and being-ness are beginning to flow out into the world and rising to the surface. This is a wave that I highly recommend riding.

An ambition is something you want to achieve. A purpose is something that reveals itself as you travel through life and realize something bigger and deeper and is trying to rise to the surface, not only in the world, but in you. Following your purpose can be really uncomfortable as it breaks your old “ambitious” identity down one experience at a time. It doesn’t leave you without ambition it leaves you without being stuck in it. It also breaks down your dependency on the “ambition” based thinking of the world. You can begin to be your own person and think for yourself.

As you follow your purpose you get challenged to the hilt but you also become more “yourself” and less “your conditioned self”.   When you do this, not only do you get the power back to enjoy your life, even more exciting is that what you work on has the potential to deeply affect others in a positive way. You naturally begin to pay it forward.

When you follow this inner passion and purpose you also begin to create a personal wave or even a group movement. When you do this, once again, you may upset those that are invested in the old way of thinking, the ambition dominated thinking. This is the “what’s in it for me” thinking. You only have to continue and trust that what is rising up in you is perfect for now and ultimately perfect for everyone.

The only caveat is that you may have to become a good listener as when you do speak up about the truth you often have to provide a “space” for those that are having trouble seeing it, to get their “truth” off their chest, so they can ultimately see a greater truth. In short, you become more compassionate and caring and tend to take it all way less personally.

When you step out like this you also get huge understanding and compassion for others that have stepped out and spoke their truth, a truth they deeply felt was worth hearing and would definitely make a difference to many. Some have even died for it. You really want to tip your hat to them, as when you are not involved in the argument, you truly see where they are coming from.

Hats off to you Pete for taking on a system that has negative intention tangled in with good intention. For attempting and constantly going out of your way to bridge with anyone who has been educated in that old system. Thanks for caring Pete and being courageous enough to speak up. We love you just the way you are and we particularly love you for having the balls to put yourself on the line.

The best way to support Pete and other truth seekers and speakers is to follow your passions, follow your truth, follow your heart, go quiet when needed and speak up when needed. Find your purpose and follow it, you will never look back. If you are already doing it, acknowledge yourself and let yourself breathe.

The world loves you for speaking your truth, even if some of the people in it don’t realize it yet. Whilst some of those who resist need just be left be, others may be your challenge and your opportunity to pick up a few on the way through. They may really want to come with you, they just don’t realize it yet. In their resistance, they may be teaching you something, they may be deepening your compassion or simply reminding you that you too thought that way once. Every day holds many chances to pay if forward like my friend Pete.

Remember, bring it into now and never underestimate the power of who you are.

Love,

Trev

 

14 Comments on “My Friend Pete”

  1. so true, well said. I’m fully behind Pete. I’m currently doing a course with a Buddhist nun called mindful eating, this and your blogs keep me on a wonderful spiritual pass. I give thanks to Pete to put such a fantastic program together.

    1. Yes Lutzy, you are definitely a scurvy elephant and we all love you for it. It’s great having you in my corner too.

  2. Very nicely written Trev. I see more and more people willing to stand – thank you for always being you and a willing advocate for life and authentic living 🙂 xo

    1. Thanks Cheryl, It’s good to see so many following their passions more, like your good self of course, and standing to make a difference. Power to the people, that’s our way through.

  3. You are truly a beautiful, wise, human being, Mr. Hendy! I’m so glad that you are stepping up and sharing your thoughts and I’m 100% with you on this one – speaking your truth is tough – a lot of people will want to bring you down, but in doing so, it also makes space for more people to shine. You and Pete are doing amazing things out there in the world and I hope you guys never stop sharing your passions. xx

  4. Thankyou Trevor, that was really encouraging! I have suffered with Bipolar Disorder for over twenty years and have been seeing an amazing therapist for six months who is helping me to love myself. I am passionate about nutrition and have just started reading Pete Evans – Going Paleo. I know I have a long way to go but I am starting to realise my passions.

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