The temptation when things get hard and uncertainty is rife, is to back away. Shy away from the light, and cocoon yourself in the familiarity and areas of life you still perceive to have some control over. Playing it ultra safe, laying low to dampen down our highly sensitive senses.
This has undoubtedly been my experience, especially over the past 18 months or so, and although I believe there is nothing wrong with this, (we can only deal with things to the best of our ability at that particular moment in time, right?), there also comes the time or perhaps the realisation, that uncertainty will always prevail and we owe it to ourselves to grab life again with both hands and live.
Life is hard, it will always be hard, but it is also wonderful and colourful, it is both complex and beautiful. For me personally, I know there is a tsunami approaching and however much I prepare and move to a higher vantage point, it is still going to leave a trail of devastation in its unwelcome wake.
So do we wait for the tsunami to pass and the tides to settle? You know, I don’t think we can. I believe we owe it to ourselves and those we hold closest to our hearts to live this sacred life with passion, compassion and reverence.
Being here, being well and living fully is a gift denied to many. Would it not be the greatest sin to waste this precious gift?
There are many things I wish to do and dream of achieving, and I have been scared to put plans in my diary more than a month or so ahead at a time because who knows what my happen between now and then. And the truth is, my world and heart will shatter at some point (in reality, if we love, we will all experience grief, loss and change).
But rather than pressing pause and living in a state of limbo alongside a nervous system in a constant adrenalised fight-flight-freeze state, perhaps it is time I dared to take an alternative path. Perhaps I can gently dust off my dreams whilst allowing myself room and space for tenderness, pausing when necessary for refuge.
Our hearts are capable of experiencing and holding so very much. We can both live and love with self-compassion, courage and fierceness. We can hold both sorrow and joy simultaneously.
I no longer want to wait for life to be more settled because the truth is life will probably never be settled or perfect and whilst we are waiting, we may also be letting our greatest adventures pass us by.
So here I am, living courageously and loving fiercely, tentatively making plans, daring to create, and envisioning how I want my future to look whilst meeting myself wherever I am in each moment.
There will be grief and heartache, but ultimately I intend to honour those I hold closest and live my life, this beautiful sacred life, from the heart.
I’d love for this to be an invitation for you to say yes, to meet the future with hope and courage and tenderness.
With love
Xxx