The Possible in the Impossible

A book has come into my life that, if I were banished to a deserted island and could only take a couple of books with me, this would be one of them.

It is called A Life Impossible written by Steve Gleason. He was an NFL football player for six years with the New Orleans Saints. Then, after retiring, in 2011, he was diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. It is a terminal disease that affects the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, causing them to die. This leads to muscle weakness, twitching, and atrophy. Eventually, the brain loses its ability to control voluntary movements, such as walking, talking, eating, and breathing.

When I heard him interviewed, I immediately got the book but in the first third or so, I kept wondering, “Why am I reading this book?” It began with an autobiography of his childhood, his love of sports, and his passion for football. But I’m so glad I stayed with it because as ALS slowly began to imprison him in a body that couldn’t eat, move, breathe, and communicate, you watch a human being learning how to be with this level of loss.

Loss of control is one of the greatest fears of the storyteller in our head and yet we live in a land of impermanence! All of us experience loss throughout our whole lives but he was losing everything we all take for granted – moving, eating, breathing, and communicating. I appreciate how real he is as you watch him struggle with it and, at times, have major meltdowns. But slowly you see him moving from raging at life and wishing it would be different, to beginning to find spaciousness and at times peace around this level of loss.

He found meditation, gratitude, and service allowed him a level of equanimity with this whole process that is astounding to witness, as we explored in last week’s blog, what is awakening? It is the art of discovering how to show up for life exactly as it is. But that includes 10,000 joys AND 10,000 sorrows.

How in the heck can a human being keep on opening to life when he is losing so much? He shows you how. One of the reasons why I love this book so much is that you see a human being awakening in the middle of seemingly insurmountable challenges. And yes, he is real about the grief of losing so much. But you watch him get caught in that struggle and then move right on through to showing up for what is showing up and then, over and over again, connecting with the deep peace that is always with us, no matter what is happening in our lives.

When I was leafing through the book the other day, I came across a sentence I had missed the first time I read it. He says this is all fierce teaching for wanting what you have. And as I let that sink in what came to me is, “Freedom comes from wanting what you have rather than always trying to have what you want.”

Our minds lead us on a merry chase, saying if just this happened or I stop doing this, or the right mate comes into my life or I lose weight, then I will know the peace I long for. But as I said in What’s in the Way is the Way, this is like trying to chase butterflies with a net full of holes.

On one particular night, when his mind was having a meltdown, he slowly comprehended that there was no way out – that the only sanity would come from being with life as it is!  And in a flash, all the struggle faded away and he opened into the field of peace that he really is.

In other words, the whole time we are caught in our minds trying to make life be what we think it should be, we totally miss life and the field of ease and peace that is always, always here.

Did he stay connected to that field of peace in the ensuing years? No. It seems that while we’re still in a body, we will remember and forget, remember and forget. But as Pema Chodron says, “You have to come back a million, million times.” What does she mean about coming back? It’s all about pulling your attention out of your struggling self and bringing it right here into an intimate connection with life exactly as it is, and all the love, joy, and awe that reside here.

Will you join me in holding the intention to reconnect with life exactly as it is, for a few moments here and there? This may not seem very powerful, but it is what will heal your deepest pain and our struggling world.

If this blog resonated with you and want to explore more of my work, I invite you to listen to my upcoming radio show on Dreamvisions 7 Radio: A New Way, A New Year, It will air on Thursday, January 16th at 5am and 5pm HERE. After the 16th, it will be available on demand, along with every other radio show I’ve ever done HERE. Please feel free to explore my catalog and listen to topics that call to you.

Offerings:

Tomorrow!: Free Live Call: Does Pain have to be so Painful?

We will be meeting Tomorrow, Tuesday, January 14th at 5:30 pm PST for an hour and a half. We will continue to meet every two months, so keep an eye out for future events!

We all experience pain.  And we all experience all levels of pain – physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual.

But we are living in an exciting time where we are changing our relationship to pain.  Join Mary in exploring how, rather than resisting the pains in your life, you can befriend them so that you receive the gifts that always come with them.

Don’t forget if you can’t make it on the day, you can still participate by sending your questions (get your questions in today!) and enjoying the recording after the call at your convenience. I hope to see you there!

It’s not too late to sign up! Click HERE to learn more and register!