Every New Year people tend to start off with good intentions. New health regimen. Vows of improvement. Lists of things to accomplish and goals to achieve.

We all do it. My consort Carter and I do our yearly goal-making on the winter solstice each year, when we determine where and how to steer our ship … and usually, year after year, decade after decade, we achieve what we set out to do.

That’s the magic of having an intention. Whether it’s to lose 5 pounds or to spend more time quietly, in peaceful relaxation — things happen when we get clear about what our needs are.

So it was with great amusement that a lesson-giving incident happened on New Year’s Eve day to us. We were returning from a lovely 5-day stay at friends’ in the Bahamas when we ran into another traveler, a woman I’ll call Faith.

We were in the Fort Lauderdale airport (just days before the shooting of January 6) when we ran into Faith. She was the only other passenger in our minivan taking us to where our car was parked for the duration of our stay. She introduced herself as a yogini. Readers of Lord Flea know I am a lifelong yogini so naturally, her freely-given description of self took my notice.

After a fun first five minutes with lots of laughs, Carter, Faith and I decided to have a lunch together before we went our separate ways. We drooled and oohed and ahhhed over fresh succulent oysters (yes, yogis can be omnivores such as I am). Then our conversation turned to a great project Faith invited us to help her develop. She wanted to make a film about hopefulness for our planet. Spiritual hopefulness, she said. Now she was really talking our lingo. Carter happens to be a seasoned filmmaker (two features under his belt) and both of us love the Mystery of Life. Over lunch we discussed ideas with jubilant enthusiasm, the three of us matching creative delight with the tastes of our exquisite meal that included fresh Bahamian conch and nutritious veggies.

Then — Faith slipped and spoke words betraying her true self, shocking Carter and me but politely, we didn’t say anything at the moment..

Faith said nasty things about Republicans in general and specifically the new President-elect, Mr. Trump. As a spiritual warrior I refuse to badmouth anyone, much less an elected leader (see previous two posts about my p.o.v. about shocking election results if you’re interested). After Carter point-blank said, “Let’s be clear, Faith, I am a Republican.” Without losing a beat I then asked her: “This film we’re discussing isn’t going to be political, is it?” Faith assured us “No!” adding, “Both sides of the conversation must be addressed in order to be fair.” Carter and I (an independent) agreed. Our meal proceeded with more exciting details, given this assurance of no-politics involved in what we all agreed would be a film designed to “open people’s hearts and minds” to the endless possibilities of our joined, nonpartisan, non-judgmental human experience on earth.

Well, I’m sure you can tell where this story leads. Faith proved to be a condemning political pundit, hiding behind the skirts of spirituality.

On her twitter feed Faith declared belief in every conspiracy theory from contrails sky-poisoning (by the government) to the imminence of WWIII (started by Trump within days of his inauguration). When I finally had the opportunity to check her social media, after Faith’s endless and increasingly confrontational texts and phonecalls as we drove 5-hours home, Carter and I quickly realized we had been taken in by an unstable person who talked “Spirit” but in actuality was bent on pointing fingers and spewing politics. Unacceptable her talk now became, we quickly dismissed Faith and her project. We sighed, knowing we’d come close to being hoodwinked and …  stuck with a lunch bill to boot (she never offered to even chip in, sign #1 of a loser).

The lesson? Over and done, quickly thanks to googling and internet sleuthing. But lesson well needed and heeded. Yes, I see my encounter with Faith  as a lesson because I stop and study each encounter with every person as an opportunity to know more about this journey we’re all on together. The lesson from meeting Faith on this auspicious day, when many of us are setting New Year’s resolutions … is to  … always listen to “signs” before  …

I need to remember to recognize each encounter as sincere, without prejudice, without judgment, before jumping in and thinking “Ahhhh, this is for me!” I need to contemplate more, and practice discrimination even more than ever, in these troubled times.

So — the fat and flab I’m referring to in this post — is my own, which isn’t hanging off my skin (although yeah, I could lose a pound or five). The spiritual flab I’m referring to amounts to the loose, not-needed blobs of my own gullibility that in the past has gotten me taken in by carnie-talk, shysters, even “humanitarian” folks who talk authoritatively, promising what at first seems righteousness but in the end, is just more obfuscation of Truth and Love and Harmony.

There’s so many people talking junk these days, I now am vowing to be hyper-cautious, thanks to my brief encounter with Faith. Thank you, each of you, for being another of my teachers along this journey we all share, helping each other leapfrog to the Light of consciousness within us All.

With love and blessings galore, LordFlea, aka teZa Lord