Trusting Chaos

We don’t have to like this time where everything is rapidly changing and systems, we have relied upon, are either stretched to their limit or breaking down. But can we trust it? Can we know that this time of chaos is also a time of great healing, a time where humanity is being invited, cajoled and even forced to mature?

It is quite a leap for our minds to trust what is happening on our planet but some of the clearest people we have are inviting us to show up for this uncontrollable and unpredictable time rather than primarily resisting and struggling. Eckhart Tolle, author of The Power of Now once said, “Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness. How do you know this is the experience you need? Because this is the experience you are having at the moment.” This is not only true for yourself, but also for the collective mind of humanity. Life is giving us exactly what we need to mature as a species.

Byron Katie, the beloved author and inspirational teacher says, “Life is simple. Everything happens for you, not to you. Everything happens at exactly the right moment, neither too soon nor too late.” And finally, Eben Alexander, a neurosurgeon and author of Proof of Heaven, who was in a seven-day coma from spinal meningitis said, the moment he woke up from the coma, “All is well.”

Do these people live in a different world than we do? How can they say all is well, or everything happens for you not to you, or life is giving you what you need for the evolution of your consciousness – especially in this time where the Coronavirus is causing such havoc all around the world?

Maybe, just maybe, they are speaking the truth.  In order to open to this truth, the first thing to know is that your mind will never agree to this. For heaven’s sake, many of the systems that we have relied upon that keep society functioning are strained to their limit – our health system, our economic system, our recreational systems, our school systems and even the ability to gather and worship. It looks like insanity to even contemplate what these quotes are offering – to move beyond resisting and struggling with these challenges and to use them instead for your awakening out of the world of struggle! But that is what the wisest people on this planet are inviting us to do.

How do you begin to shift your perception from struggling with life to actually being present for it, even in this difficult time? Imagine what it would be like to see that all these major challenges as invitations to discover a new way to be with life, especially with the fear that is very present for most people. The old way of struggling with life is what you have been conditioned to do. Your mind likes ‘this’ but doesn’t like ‘that.’ It thinks ‘this’ is right and ‘that’ is wrong; ‘this’ is good and ‘that’ is bad. It says at one moment you should have an ice cream cone and then five minutes later it starts struggling with your choice and tells you that you shouldn’t have done that! Ask yourself, has struggling with what is ever brought you the lasting healing you long for?

There is another way to be with all that life brings. This way respects and trusts the intelligence of life. Or as Eckhart Tolle says, “Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you have chosen it.  Always work with it, not against. Make it your friend and ally, not your enemy. This will miraculously transform your whole life.”

With a tiny bit of respect for the intelligence of life, you would be a lot less interested in struggling with even the little things in life, like an ice cream cone. Instead, you would become interested, curious, fascinated about this moment and your reaction to it. And rather than reacting, you would find yourself responding with insight and heartfulness. That is where true and lasting healing happens – not from trying to fix, judge, react, get rid of or rise above the challenges of your life. It comes from getting to know how you struggle with life so that you can be present for what life is offering you at any given moment.

In these challenging and disorienting times many of us are finding it a bit of a stretch to stay present and open; to remain faithful to showing up for life exactly as it is; to remember that even the tiniest of choices and gestures you make as you move throughout your day hold the power to transform our world. But even moments of saying yes to whatever is happening in your life are phenomenally healing for yourself and for the world.

So, start small. You can learn how to show up for little challenges like arguing over the remote, or a sliver in your finger that stops you from typing, or an upset stomach. Rather than being lost in reaction, you can respond, being with yourself when you most need yourself. Then slowly work up to the big challenges – the possibility of you or a loved one getting the Coronavirus; not being able to pay your rent; or feeling overwhelmed from being so isolated; or going stir crazy because you have to work from home and also homeschool your children at the same time.

When you notice your caught, allow a long slow out breath and then connect with something that is happening right outside the world of fear – hear the sound of the birds, notice the rising and falling of one breath, taste, really taste your coffee. It is when you make direct contact with life as it is right now that you know, truly know, all is well.

I leave you with one of my favorite quotes by Vivian Greene:

“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass; it’s about learning to dance in the rain.”