Ebb
and Flow
“Action
and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change—this is the
rhythm of living...”
Bruce
Barton
When
I walked out on my porch this morning, I was stuck by the difference
in the light, the relative silence. When I look around me, I see
leaves beginning to lose their verdant green, and a few brown ones
already on the ground. The bird song is quieter, the cicadas are
gone, and only the slightest insect hum reaches my ears. The summer
is ebbing, fall is on its way. Seasons predictably changing.
According
to the ancient mystical tradition of Judaism, the Kabbalah, there are
four ways to altar an unfortunate outcome, or fate, and they all have
to do with change. First, change our idea of generosity from giving
in a way that assures our own comfort, as most of us do, to giving in
a way that assures we will feel the pinch. Think here of Jesus' story
of the widow's mite in which a poor widow gave two tiny coins, but
more of her net worth, than the rich man who gave bags of gold.
Second, change the way we pray. Instead of asking God to do what we
want God to do, let go and let God. Move from what is fear-based
grasping, to love-based gratitude for what already is. Better still,
adopt a prayer that says simply, “I trust you.”
Third, change our ways—if we are living in a way that is harmful to
ourselves or others, or if we are living a life that is totally
self-serving, change it to one that does no harm, and is of service.
Habits that inhibit full participation in life are in all of us all
the time. By changing them, we improve not only ourselves, but the
world at large.
And
finally, change our name—this may not mean literally change our
name, but it means to change who we are. If we are heavily dependent on
one particular identity, one persona—intellectual, mother,
go-getter, CEO—reinvent that perception. Begin to develop the opposite set
of skills from the ones that have served for so long, and by which we
are identified. By changing how we, and others, name us, our
life, and thus our fate, becomes richer and more diverse.
Change
is inevitable. It is up to us as to whether we allow it to ebb and
flow naturally, or spend our sweet life trying to prevent it. Will we
step into the rhythm of life, or not?
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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