As I am looking at my own life, the lives of my clients and the on going tragedies that are happening in this world, I am asking the following question…How do we bounce back from a physical illness, the loss of a loved one, the destruction of a home, a complete lack of meaning in life or a sense of deep isolation? What are our options?
One of the most potent medicines in bouncing back is to create meaningful connections. You may or may not know how to create authentic relationships, how to ask for help, how to be real in your deepest places of despair, or how to trust the people around you…. Regardless, reaching out is certainly a key element in finding yourself again.
There is another component that I would like to emphasize today; I call it the Art of Falling. In order to bounce back you need to know how to fall. If you are too rigid when you fall you will hurt yourself; if you don’t let go you will break parts of your body. You need to allow yourself to touch the bottom; like playing on a trampoline you can ‘t bounce back if you don’t touch the bottom.
When you really fall you are able to experience a sacred space where the swirl of emotions does not overwhelm you anymore; you become stable and lucid, there is nothing more to loose.
The mind does not know how to fall; the mind wants to be safe. The heart knows how to fall simply because the heart is not driven by fear or the future. The mind on its own has a distorted relationship with pain…either it runs away from it or it is addicted to it.
How deeply can you let yourself fall? How deeply can you feel your own pain, despair, anxiety or loss? If you go deep your will heal yourself and the pain will shift to a more spacious and sacred experience.
What do you do to avoid falling? Do you make yourself busier? Do you abuse your body? Do you blame your circumstances? What do you do? Learn to fall if you want to bounce back. Learn to fall if you want to grow and experience peace in your life.
With much love and gratitude for being part of my life, I wish you a great holidays season.