OK, this is a major turning point in breaking through the fears of the past and bringing enjoyment to something that I had great deal of boredom and negative emotion tied to. Does anyone get excited to go to court? I know I never have, but after today, I am!!!
So, I got a moving violation for actually communicating with a fellow driver, that driver giving me the right of way, me taking it and then getting an “unsafe lane change” ticket. I decided immediately that I will plead “not guilty” and take this to court -:) But a bit of a back story.
Now, while living in India, Drivers communicate with each other and make moves accordingly, here in Los Angeles, we just follow rules and pray for safety, hence the ludicrous amount of accidents on any given day in LA. When you take human communication out of operating a motor vehicle, what you get it system breakdown.
In my case, I pulled up next to a bus driver that had been stopped for a while. I needed to make a right turn, I looked at the bus driver, we smiled, he waved me on in front of him, I turned happily and then… sirens, and you know the rest.
Now, Yesterday, after dragging the ticket out to court for 8 months, was my court date. In the days leading up to it, I felt a sense of nervousness, as I remember going to court quite a few times when I was young, and it was ALWAYS an impotent and negative experience. My stomach churned for moments throughout the day when I thought about it. What was it bringing up? Well the childhood sense of “I am bad” “I have done something wrong””I am an outcast””I am not good enough” and on and on and on.
It wasn’t until about 10 minutes before walking into the courthouse, after a loving hug and smile from my wife, that I decided to let go and have fun, be present and enjoy the process and see what happens (as I am doing with most similar experiences in life now).
This is what happened.
I arrived to the room to see my past, a large group of other people with the same, 'I have done something wrong complex' whom all hung their heads and failed to look in each others eyes. Not me though, I connected,. I connected with the security downstairs, the people in line, the various beautiful woman ( a must :-) all the way to the bailiff whom greeted us with one of the most beautiful smiles I have ever seen. I told him that! He smiled even brighter. Come to find out, this guy was like a comedian, super funny, sharing about listening and what happens if we fail to listen. His ever expansive smile filled our hearts as we sat and waited for the judge. Then the judge comes out and the comedy of errors begins as he darts from one person to the next with quick comedic wit of a Jester. I am smiling from head to toe, this is amazing, the whole place falls into comedic uproar, and, I feel of sense of community in the room and a great deal of support for each and every character that walks up to the judge to give a plea. Violations from Arguments on Buses, to Storage in Parks, Speeding and tinted windows. Each and every story had a story behind it and I observed the magical play of life that was in this room and the beautiful humans that paused their life to clean the slate. We all had arrived there with a purpose to move forward with something. For most, it was to clear the ticket, but for me, it was to take the next step of the journey and give my simple plea of “Not Guilty” (with a smile). I LOVE LIFE!
Now, I got another 4 months before trial, and oh boy, I cannot wait to see what comes to life in the next court room chronicles. Stay tuned ….
