A question came up recently in a group I participate in about how to stay on task when feeling drained, and keep emotions separate from the work we need to do.
The first thing that came to me when I read the question was, “I am not what I’m experiencing.”
When I remember this, then what I’m experiencing or feeling is able to be set aside for the work I need to do in the moment. I’m able to tap into something pure and clear within me.
That’s not to say that my experience isn’t “pure” or that it’s not important. But what I’ve come to see is that life is filled with so many challenges, and our tendency as human beings is to get caught up in them as if we ARE those challenges, or to ignore/avoid/numb them.
Something that helps me to remember this is Nature.
I don’t mean just spending time in Nature, but rather remembering that I AM Nature. Nature is filled with death, destruction, turmoil, loss, and constant transformation. It is also filled with life, beauty, creation, gifts and peace.
Nature accepts all of it, surrendering to all of it and remaining detached from all of it.
When I remember that I AM Nature, the challenges I’m having become more “part of life” that I know I’m capable of navigating, rather than obstacles that “get in the way.”
That said, Nature integrates and digests (She calls it composting) all that happens. We need to do our own composting. That requires “being with” what’s happened.
Human Beings are capable of reason and discernment, whereas Nature operates on instinct, in the moment. We have the capacity to choose “not to feel” something in any given moment, but that doesn’t mean that we’ll get away with not feeling it at all.
What needs to be processed will continue to knock at our door until we do our own integration and digestion (composting). That means fully feeling and processing what’s before us, perhaps with the support of wise counsel, remedies, practices, etc.
Our capacity to choose is what makes us so capable of bringing healing. We can discern what’s needed, when it’s needed, how it’s needed, and so on.
We can consciously take into account where we are in our own Natural rhythm, such as the rhythm of the seasons or the moon, and have compassion and understanding for ourselves in the process.
When I remember that I can do this, and also ask Nature to help me, I feel so much more empowered, and so much more at peace with whatever it is that I’m experiencing.
For me, it’s ultimately about rooting into who I am, remembering the gifts I have to offer and the resources I have available to me.
It’s about staying present and centered in the moment, and consciously surrendering to the chaos out of which the new is birthed.
It’s about transcending and including all that’s going on.
It’s about being conscious of where I am on my path, and trusting the process to unfold toward life (i.e. for my highest good).
Nature does this pretty well, so I figure I must have it within me to do so too.
