Have you heard the saying, “The only thing that is constant is change?” You may have nodded your head and thought “yes, that sounds true.” But have you really considered what this means for you and your life? This nugget of wisdom comes from ancient Greek philosophy – so the awareness that life is perpetually in flux has been around a while! And yet, we still struggle with it – believing that we can control things or freeze them in place somehow – avoiding the change that is inevitable and “constant.”
Here’s a little story to illustrate:
Imagine you are walking along a path. As you walk, you begin to see signs that say “turn right” – but you ignore them or don’t think they apply to you. You keep walking and the signs keep showing up. You continue to dismiss them as unimportant. Eventually, you come to a turn where the road goes to the right. But you keep on going straight. You are determined to keep going in the same direction despite the signs and the changing of the path. You walk straight into thick vegetation that makes it hard to move, and sometimes even painful. You are moving very slowly now, sometimes barely at all. It is taking a great deal of effort. But you keep pushing forward, refusing to turn back or try a different way.
As you can imagine, this is a metaphor for how we deal with the changing circumstances of our own lives. We often get so attached to a certain direction or trajectory, that we ignore the signs telling us to turn. And when we get to the turn itself, we ignore it and stubbornly move forward – often leading to a place of stuckness or struggle.
Life is not static. It is not unidirectional. It is dynamic and it demands your conscious participation.
When your focus gets rigid or myopic, when you stubbornly hang on to (or resist) an idea or a way of doing things, when you ignore your intuition or the way you are feeling…you are setting yourself up for trouble down the line. Change can feel scary, especially if you are afraid of the loss or uncertainty that can accompany it.
But, if you allow yourself to open up to the current moment – seeing and feeling what is present NOW – you will find the clarity and support you need along the way. When we soften our attachment to what has been or what we think should be, we become receptive to what IS – and that’s where the good stuff happens!
So, notice the signs, resources, and opportunities that are showing up.
Pay attention to flashes of inspiration, intuitive messages, and synchronicities. All of this is here to help you shift, adapt, and create. Then you can move with ease and confidence in the direction your path is truly leading you in.
Here is a simple 3-step process to support you:
- Awareness – Get present! Use whatever practices you want – meditation, writing, a walk in nature, yoga, etc. Then get curious. Ask yourself things like: How do I feel? What thoughts or ideas keep calling to me? What/who am I responding to most in my environment? Where do I feel frustration or longing? What is draining me? What do I wish could be different? What do I see in others that I wish I could have for myself? Engage in self-inquiry and creative exploration to get a deeper understanding of what is present for you.
- Willingness – Once you have gotten present, the next step is to open up to what is ready to move, change, come in, etc. This is where you stop fighting yourself and your own evolution…and become receptive. The more willing and open you can be (as in softening your judgments and resistance – which come from the old way of being), the easier it will be to respond to your life in authentic and life enhancing ways.
- Action – Now that you are more present, open and receptive, it is time to act on it! Take what is coming up in your awareness, what is calling to you, what the signs are pointing to – and find ways to engage with it. This may be further exploration, acting on (or creating) an opportunity, trying out something new, finding support, or any other inspired action that gets you moving on your path.
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