Embracing What Is Given
Hello Dear Ones, and Happy Solstice (yesterday!)
There is so much I could write about today. This is such a rich season for reflecting, celebrating, and writing. Celebrating one’s inner light has been a clear topic on my mind. Yesterday the idea of “Long Slow Shadows and Breathing” came to me. Today though, there is a different theme tugging at me harder, and it needs to be written now. So off we go!
I am hearing that so many people are experiencing illness right now. Covid is on the move, and in our communities again. (I’d just about forgotten about Covid, hadn’t you?). Families are experiencing hardship on many levels. This is also a season of big grief. It’s classic right now. And. Many of us are pushing hard, preparing for the holidays that we celebrate, or just simply working quickly to close up shop before our children and families are home with us for a week or two.
I know for myself, this entire autumn and journey into winter has been LOADED with one challenge after another. Often at least three at a time. I can laugh about it now, but it was been HARD. And, as I have gone inward and done the work, risen with the opportunities, I can see so clearly that I have grown exponentially in the process.
Here is what I have learned, and now know is true: All that we are given is to be embraced.
I am learning, layer by layer, that all that life serves up is here for our benefit, even though much of it is not easy. I know a spiritual teacher (Matt Kahn) who responds to everything in life with: “Thank you for helping me.”
It’s so easy to see the juicy, fun moments in life as here for us, right? But what about the moments of illness, worry, overwhelm, grief, pain and even suffering? (I call them Moments of Contrast). These are here for us too. Everything has a tailor-made lesson embedded in it. Just for us.
The lesson in Moments of Contrast tends to be this: Here is an opportunity to tune into yourself, to tend yourself, and to grow/evolve. Will you take this opportunity?
The work, for each of us, is to embrace these moments and to do the work. Go inward and ask: What is this Moment of Contrast teaching me, or offering to me? What do I need? What can I learn? How would I love to respond? How can I grow wiser, stronger and more whole in this process?
See here is the thing: Illness (and any other kind of contrast) forces us to slow down, rest, restore ourselves, and evolve. We see this so clearly in children, when we really watch. Children become ill, rest, and when given plenty of recovery time, will take a developmental leap as they return to wellbeing. It’s incredible to witness.
We adults are the same, but we often override this process and miss the opportunities within it so easily. Illness, grief, pain, suffering, big challenges and obstacles…. They are all an invitation to go inward, to tend ourselves, to decide how we’d like to respond, and then we launch into growth, healing, evolution, greater wisdom.
In essence, each Moment of Contrast invites us to step more deeply into who we are, and how we want to be in the world. Pretty amazing, right?!
But here is the thing: We have to slow down, be conscious in our process. In other words, we have to show up and see these Moments of Contrast for what they are: Clear Bright Opportunities. And we must embrace them, again and again and again.
Everything is here for us, says Matt Kahn. The more I practice this within my own life, the more I see how exactly true this is.
So here is my question to you (you know I always love to ask you questions, because in the end, this is all about you!):
Where are there Moments of Contrast in your life right now?
If you quiet yourself and be still for a moment, what are these asking of you?
What is the invitation for growth within them?
Can you shift your mindset and find any ounce of gratitude for the opportunities here?
In deep gratitude for everything in this sweet life,
Rebecca
* Disclaimer: This likely goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway: Everything I write is for educational purposes only. Nothing I write or share can be deemed diagnostic or medical advice. Nothing I write or share can replace your own healthcare providers or your own internal wisdom. Period. Please seek tailored medical care and advice via your skilled healthcare team whenever you need it.
