Friday, July 22, 2011

Clearing the road

Image courtesy of Bing images
I'm in one of those stages where life in general is on the verge of improving in myriad ways.  Personal life is good, new work and projects are in the pipeline, so I can't complain about the near future.  What I find interesting is that just prior to good things hitting many of our personal horizons, Life seems to throw some curve balls.  I'm experiencing this myself, and I find it a curious manifestation.  I don't know what the purpose is of hardships being visited just prior to prosperity manifesting, but it does seem to be a common experience.  I know it isn't unique to my life, as I've discussed this with friends many times over the years.

A good analogy would be that you're driving along a beautiful road, enjoying the journey, only to keep getting slowed down by small or large landslides.  You can see beyond the pile of debris to clear road, but you have to stop and clear the rubble away before driving on down the beautiful vista.

It could be argued that it's just Life...that it isn't necessarily a good or a bad thing, nor should it be looked at as any deep, dark cloud of Doom being visited upon us.  I don't dispute that thought - Life does hand us all manner of energies.  I've said time and time again that we define ourselves by how we choose to react to a given set of circumstances.

So, when you can see happy times within a fingertips' grasp, yet you find yourself also swimming against the proverbial current to get there, how do you deal with it?  I find myself focusing on my breathing.  When I feel conflicted, or scared that something insurmountable is approaching, I feel a sense of heaviness in my chest.  This reminds me to search for calm, to stop the vicious cycle of fear based thoughts, and immediately choose to switch the focus of my conscious thoughts to something of a lighter and happier emotion and vibration.  Does this work 100% of the time to ease that moment of stress?  A great majority of the time, it really does.

Yes, the issues of concern remain, even when I am changing my conscious set point and pattern of thoughts.  However, when I focus on happier thoughts, I'm better able to come back to that issue of concern with a more clear head.  Solutions are more easily accessed, if I just take time to breathe through the initial fears.  I admit that even knowing this fact to be true, I sometimes fall victim to those encroaching worries.  They build up in our mind's eye with ferocious and astonishing speed, don't they?!

What I'm focusing on today is that my near future has a lot of wonderful things that are on the verge of happening. These things are mere weeks away and will bring some much needed stability and security to my freelancing business.  On a personal level, my life is also changing and that energy is growing and improving, and is also mere weeks away from further clarity happening.  It is the here and now that is a bit challenging and worrisome.  I'm falling back on a lifetime of practicality to weather the temporary bumps in the road, and I'm very appreciative of having these coping skills.

Am I still harboring some fears, deep inside?  Yes, to a degree, because reality can be downright harsh at times.  To be fair, adopting a temporary hunkering down mode doesn't slow down or prevent all the good energy that is approaching; I remind myself of this fact quite often.  Perhaps the bumps in the road are Nature's way of clearing out a bunch of junky energy.  Sort of a way to clear the road by dramatic means....a catharsis.  If looked at in this manner, then the series of troublesome moments that hit prior to the good stuff occurring can be looked at as a blessing.  It is my habit to look for the positives in any situation, and these thoughts have been circling in my mind for the past several weeks.  I would much rather find a way to appreciate these annoying little tangles in my path than to lament and embrace them, building them into an even larger ball of worries.  I think we all know that focusing and pouring energy into a negative mindset just encourages more of that same energy to grow and manifest.

So, yes, Life sometimes throws us unexpected unpleasant moments right on the eve of wonderful things approaching.  Is this some sort of Divine test to see if we're strong enough to persevere, strong enough to hold our faith, strong enough to keep smiling?  It may be a modicum of all of those, and it may be none of them.  It all depends on our perspective and our conscious choices.  There's obvious merit in not giving in to despair.  No one wants to dwell in such a sad mental and emotional space.

I like the thought of clearing the road for better energies to manifest.  That empowers my Spirit, and lifts my heart, and it most certainly eases that heaviness of breath that was making itself felt.  Choosing to look at this situation as a positive, this clearing of the road for better things to come, allows me to feel a rush of anticipation.  A sense of sureness that yes, this is all part of the Greater Picture, the Greater Plan, and is a necessary piece of the process.  It is a strong truth that before order can be created, chaos usually is the precursor.  With that in mind, I am now better able to face these smaller bits of detritus littering my path, because I recognize that this is a clearing of discordant energies that no longer serve a positive purpose.  Logically, if I move through these smaller moments of  frustration and weather them with equanimity and a sense of Grace, they will clear away that much more quickly.  I just have to be willing to roll my sleeves up and be purposeful in how I choose to direct my energies to clear the debris littering my personal path.  It's the concept that is resonating the most strongly for me, so that is what I am choosing to embrace.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

24 comments:

  1. I keep reminding myself that it is the present journey that is telling me something .... the destination will come....I may forget what I have picked up on the way if I was to focus too much on the result....

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  2. Savira, that's such a powerful way to shift our thinking, yes?! I love the way you think, and I appreciate you sharing your thoughts on this topic. I think it's one that we all wrestle with daily, and we end up getting in our own way a LOT as a result.

    Much love to you!

    ~ Dawn

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  3. "That which does not kill us, makes us stronger..." Great blog, cuz!

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  4. Nicole, what a wonderful thing to see your name here! I love you, honey, and appreciate you visiting and leaving a comment. It's always so cool to know family reads my writing occasionally. :) I'll be okay - and your comment boils it all down to the best approach of all. Acceptance & a calm heart really are powerful tools.

    Loving you twice!

    ~ Dawn

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  5. choosing to embrace sounds so simple, yet i find it to be rather frightening at times, but yields such good results. love this dawnie.

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  6. Janie, isn't that the God's honest truth? Wisdom really is simple when we look at it with clear eyes. It's rarely simple to LIVE the truth of it, though. I'm working hard to not let the fear-based side of it win. As usual, I found that writing it out of my heart made a big difference. Thank you for visiting! <3

    ~ Dawnie

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  7. You are right to try to deal with the fear and move forward. One of the common struggles in life is success comes with challenges before, during, and after.

    I always remind myself of this by one of my favorite quotes from Albert Einstein, "Do not worry about your difficulties in mathematics; I can assure you that mine are still greater."

    Roadblocks are often opportunities in themselves!

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  8. Hi Dawn....I think all of us can really identify with your post today. Personally, as one dealing with adversity on a pretty regular basis, because of various family members behaviors....I can honestly say that I have developed this philosophy....."Embrace the Journey". Everything passes and NOTHING IS FOREVER. That is just the ebb and flow of life.

    Glad I stopped by today,

    Jo

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  9. Just Another Thought Online, I have read that quote of Einstein's many times over the years & it never fails to make me smile, as it is a very apt common point to ponder. Your final comment, "Roadblocks are often opportunities in themselves!" is another strong truth! The conscious shifting of how we choose to view any given set of circumstances & then how we choose to react to them is where we grow, I think. Thank you so much for your thoughts & for visiting!

    Hi Jo! I'm glad this post had merit for you. I've found that when I'm wrestling with something, if I share my thoughts in writing, quite often others are going through similar challenges. It helps just to know we're not alone in that regard. Your words are so true...."everything passes & nothing is forever". I'm focusing on that very mindset & working hard to breathe through the doubts & worries. I appreciate you taking time to offer your thoughts & spread some of your own sunshine. :)

    Namaste' to you both,

    Dawn

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  10. P.S. To Just Another Thought Online, I just visited your blog but there's not an option to leave comments anywhere that I could find. I'm not sure if that's intentional or not, but I did look & wasn't able to find anything to click to leave a comment.

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  11. What a wonderful perspective, Dawnie! I'm glad things are looking up for you both professionally and personally, and this is a great way to look at those things that still get in the way.

    I think I've had a bit of that in the last few weeks, though some are bigger than others.

    It's good to be back, and it's good to read another uplifting post by one of my best blogging friends.

    Love ya!

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  12. Whenever I hit bumps in the road of my life, I repeat to myself "this too, shall pass". It doesn't prevent the bump, but helps to remind me that bump is temporary. Very thought provoking post. Thanks Dawn!

    ~cath xo
    Twitter @jonesbabie

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  13. Hey Dave! You know, today was truly unpleasant. I'm not going to lie. It gave me a series of hits that scared the fool out of me & had me sincerely worried on a couple of levels. I knew, though, that if I didn't immediately get a handle on the negative emotions that it would spiral out of control & turn into a huge monster in my head. So, I wrote it out & got some perspective on it in the process. I guess it's just that natural ebb & flow of Life, and some of the comments on this post have been so valuable to contemplate. It was worth baring my own angst to get some good conversation going! Thanks, as always, for visiting & leaving another great comment to the thread here.

    Much love,

    Dawnie

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  14. Cath, funny that you used that particular phrase. I wrote a post a couple weeks ago called, "It's Temporary" that expounds on that very concept. It's definitely a good mantra to repeat to ourselves when those annoying bumps in the road jump up to meet us. And one day, we wake up, go through our day and suddenly, it really IS better, and the bumps in the road have smoothed out. I'm focusing on that thought with all my heart right now. Thanks so much for visiting! :)

    ~ Dawn

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  15. I am glad things are looking up and your coping skills are intact. Breathing always helps me too. I cross one bridge at a time these days and am getting pretty good at staying in the now.

    I have found that letting go of expectations has worked miracles for me because what seems to be showing up with out me preconceiving it in my mind has been so much better than anything I could have dreamed. I am just an open vessel these days and what ever shows up shows up. If I don't like it I dump it out and move on!

    Lots of love to you!

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  16. Deanne, I love your comments & thoughts on this topic! Letting go of expectations is such a good approach. We do tend to want to wrestle reality into our own little neatly packaged idea of what Life "should" be, don't we. The discipline of being open to all possibilities is one that I do my best to embrace. And as you said, if it doesn't work, dump it out and move forward! Thanks so much for the visit, sweet girl!

    Much love in return,

    Dawn

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  17. Most of us get scared when things don't go according to plan or when life throws a curve ball, but if we keep looking ahead past the little bumps we will see a bright and happy future. The sun does come out after a while and dispels gloomy clouds, one shouldn't give up hope. Lovely post...

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  18. Sulekkha, such strong truths you wrote here! Hope is essential, I agree. I rarely lose sight of the fact that most bumps in the road are temporary; I just find it curious how they seem to hit right before good things begin to manifest. I'm all for clearing the road to allow that manifesting to set in that much more quickly. I always enjoy your thoughts, so thank you for visiting today. :)

    Namaste',

    Dawn

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  19. I'm happy to hear that you have some very positive events on the horizon. That's exciting! I always try to remind myself that life is a journey and going with the ebb and flow is the point - at least in my mind. But often easier said than done.

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  20. Mari, yes, it is often easier said than done! I have gotten back to daily yoga as a result, and that helps me come back to mindfulness in a more efficient, self-aware manner. I'm excited for the good stuff that is approaching, and am looking at the clearing of the road right now as a blessing. :) Thank you for the great comment!

    ~ Dawn

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  21. Clearing the road.. the title itself speaks volumes of positiveness..
    Awesome read !!

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  22. Jyoti, thank you sweetheart! I'm still working on clearing my personal road - I think that's a lifelong occupation for most of us. It made me smile to see your face and words here, so I'm off to visit you in return! :)

    ~ Dawn

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  23. It sounds like the “darkest before the dawn” condition that you’re referring to here.

    I agree that we define ourselves by how we choose to react to any given set of circumstances. The one thing we don’t want to succumb to is the tendency to wallow in self-pity and live in woe-is-me-ville.

    My most recent post asks the question, what do you fear? I wondered how I was going to write about the day I had the emotional meltdown at Crabtree Valley. Then I realized that I needed to go inward and search the depths of my soul to discover the latent fears that had triggered the incident. It helped me to get over the road bump with grace and even beauty. Sublimation.

    I’m happy to hear that your life is producing good fruit dear Dawn. I hold my champagne glass up and say “Cheers!”

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  24. Hi Debra! You and I sound similar in mindset in that we both are determined to delve deeply to pinpoint what is making us feel the way that we are. If I can understand it, then I can fix or adapt my behavior so that a level of comfort occurs. I've never been a fan of living in negative emotions. I think there's logic in feeling those feelings - as opposed to self-medicating or ignoring them - and processing them so we learn from them. That's the approach that works best for me. And there's a certain level of triumph that is experienced when you do the internal work and realize that, "Oh, yes, I used to be afraid of this, but now it is less than a grain of sand on the beach and has no power to harm me." I love that! And now I'm off to visit your world in return. :)

    Much love!

    Dawn

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