Hello Dear Ones,
I have a grandnephew, now in 8th grade after walking the uncertain path of cancer with him when diagnosed at age 2. Cancer free now, he still contends with the residue affects of all the chemo and radiation. Hi parents continue to do an amazing job rallying in his support, however the financial and emotional stress took it’s toll on their relationship and they now weather through a divorce.
My grandson, now almost 11, has come a long way from the first time we wrapped your minds and hearts around the reality that he had autism. Until he was 18 months old he was meeting all his developmental milestones, and then he regressed… disappeared. We lost eye contact and only had minimal and mostly nonsensical vocalization. He eloped, and could not stand it when water touched his skin. Any sense of normalcy was detoured by autism, not only for him, but for his mom and dad and his little sister. It is a journey with no end in site, and so we face each day curiously looking for the highest and best
My own health has been a rollercoaster due to fibromyalgia, migraines, and gut issues. It seems about the time I might be beyond it all enough to focus on work, another unexpected delay emerges that comes with an emotional and financial impact. Expectations get set aside to meet the invitation to learn to love what is.
Vaccines? Autoimmune systems challenged by environmental assaults? GMO? Genetics? Gluten sensitivities? Luck of the draw? Sacred assignment? All or none could contribute to the situation.
Still, the drawbacks, assumptions, and possible causes are not what I want to discuss here. Whining never seems an option and does far more harm than good, although is sometimes a tricky step to maneuver through and best to let go of quickly.
I want to talk about the possibilities… the good ones… the blessings that are ALWAYS (eventually) possible… the sometimes hard-won and difficult-to-see blessings that come from crisis and make us even more aware of the many precious things in life. It takes determined eyes to see them, but as far as I can tell, life is far more enjoyable when I insist on finding the flower coming through the crack in the sidewalk.
The cause or the excuse or the circumstances is what matters the least, not the most. Happiness is dependent upon where we place out focus. It is in our highest and best, and that of the ones we love, to refocus on what is good as quickly as possible, no matter how challenging is may seem. It makes life far more fun, rich, and worthwhile when we loosen our death grip on the rollercoaster bar and even dare to raise our arms up in the air and fully surrender to the adventure.
To make best use of the time we have in this form, it seems important to live a feisty and full life, to play brave, no matter what. To dare and stretch, and love deeply! When we must face a crisis it is seldom easy, but inevitably worthwhile. You have to be willing. I full life is not for the faint of heart.
“You have been offered “the gift of crisis”. As Kathleen Norris reminds us, the Greek root of the word crisis is “to sift”, as in, to shake out the excesses and leave only what’s important. That’s what crises do. They shake things up until we are forced to hold on to only what matters most. The rest falls away.”
? Glennon Doyle Melton, Carry On, Warrior: Thoughts on Life Unarmed
May we all learn how to sift! And to love without limits. And to trust that all is well, even when it appears not to be.
Remember, love is always the answer to every question. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!
Boldly,
Rhonda
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