Journey Beyond Belief

Has your world turned upside down recently?  How do you cope with losing your job, health issues and financial difficulties to name a few, or with new relationships, work opportunities, new directions or places to live?

With financial and business structures collapsing here and around the world, unsettled feelings and angst abound.  These signals are calling for major societal and personal course corrections on every level including claiming our destiny.

What if you didn’t have to cope and could actually thrive if you could not only loosen your grip as you hang by your fingernails filled with confusion and trepidation but also release your grip?  Relating to and navigating the white waters of change in new ways can decrease stress while increasing clarity on the way to boundless joy, peace and ease.

I used to say I loved change until I realized I only loved the change I initiated being much less thrilled with unexpected changes. My first thoughts when confronted with unexpected change focus on what I will lose believing that what is ahead will be worse than what I have now.  Fears around the current health care reform debate are a perfect example of this.

When the pain of loss arises, I quickly attempt to avoid it at all costs even though those costs are huge. Efforts to block the grieving process that manifest as resistance, also known as fear with its many faces, i.e., control, stubbornness, procrastination, negativity, busyness/constant motion, excuses, and attachment to what’s familiar, only serve to deepen the discomfort.  Sending the pain underground will, at some point, cause an unexpected eruption leaving me and those around me confused and astounded.

So, how can these fears morph into excitement?  Some things that have worked for me are:

1. Remembering that fear, an acronym for False Evidence Appearing Real, is always future based and not true.  Returning to the current moment, things are always fine.
2. Lovingly embracing those feelings as I allow them to surface and gratefully honoring what is being left.
3. Realizing the outcomes of the many transitions I’ve experienced have always taken me to places filled with more gifts and bliss than I ever imagined.
4. Knowing there are no right or wrong decisions, only choices I make with available information.  As I follow my chosen path, more data is gathered guiding my further choices including course corrections, if needed.  Nothing is forever and I am always at choice.
5. Increasing my faith, peace and connection with me through journaling, walking the labyrinth, and spending time in nature.
6. Understanding that all changes are invitations to living more fully from my authentic self and purpose.

Another exciting aspect of this process is acknowledging the gifts I’ve received from the people, places and things of my past that will always be with me to lift your spirits and support my next steps.

Limbo and the Field of All Possibilities

Our culture has great difficulty with being in limbo. Remember the infamous 2000 presidential election?  While the country waited in limbo for five weeks for the election outcome, the widespread discomfort was palpable.  Confusion and blame were rampant as politicians and the media tried to fill the void.

The most effective way to relate to the limbo experience is to get still, go within and listen.  The temptation to move into high or higher gear to make something happen provides the perfect distraction to bury those uncomfortable feelings. A painting in my home says “Don’t push the river, it will flow at its own pace.”  To me, this is the message of this process.  Slow down, listen and feel the rhythm – my rhythm, the rhythm of the changes that are occurring – trusting that all will unfold in perfected timing.

Connecting with my deepest desires guides me to enjoy this time of spaciousness.  Deepak Chopra calls the void “the field of all possibilities” – the richest, most creative place there is.  My desires are my soul’s longings – they belong to me.  The soul communicates with me through my feelings –the light feelings reflect my soul’s truth, while the heavy feelings reflect the lies I tell myself.  Allowing myself to partake of the luxury, no, the necessity, of the creative gifts available during this time is self-nurturing of the highest order.

New Beginnings

New beginnings bring excitement, inspiration, and discombobulating stress.  The wonder of newness, uncharted waters, is both exhilarating and scary.  New places, people, skills, and experiences serve to stretch and challenge us to become more of who we really are.  Continuing to move toward the essence of our dreams, without attachment to the timing or form they might take, provides for new beginnings to unfold beyond our wildest imaginings.

While the change process appears linear here, it is truly much more fluid.  Feelings of grief can be dancing with flashes of creativity as glimpses of possible new beginnings arise.  Participating fully with the changes we face by allowing whatever comes up to flow through us with as little resistance as possible guarantees an incredible ride.  We have chosen to live in these exciting, unsettling times as the external anchors that used to keep us afloat are disappearing, calling us to look within to find our source of strength and peace.  All that was nailed down is coming loose so we can stand in our truth, fly with spirit and steer with our hearts.