“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, but about learning to dance in the rain.” – Vivian Greene
Most people seem to be striving to get somewhere new, to acquire more than they have, to do something bigger, or to be someone better than they suppose themselves to be. Scientific studies are now linking this general lack of satisfaction to various stress-related disease processes. When we are stuck in a mindset that only rewards doing or achievement, we are not only blocking ourselves from experiencing the immense value of spending quality time in the act of being, but we also start to succumb to the negative effects of the kind of energy that accompanies the perpetual doing paradigm. Undergirding the idea that something always needs to be better, is the basic assumption that that our lives are somehow deficient. In this mindset, we are basically seeing ourselves and our life experience as “less than”. This kind of thinking can only exist when we are comparing ourselves and our lives with something else. We make these comparisons about possessions, personal attributes, accomplishments, the people that surround us, health issues …. just about anything that is a part of our life. When a particularly difficult situation comes into our lives, the assumptions and comparisons often get worse.
We have a choice as to whether we fill our thinking with comparisons of how we measure up to others, or with simple appreciation for what we do have. We always have a choice to be grateful for the unique qualities, with which we were gifted, rather than believing that someone else’s qualities are better. If we hold ourselves to a standard of doing the best we can, we may often find ourselves engaged in activities to enhance our abilities and improve our skills. Activities that emerge from a desire to reach our full potential, rather than from a perceived need to achieve or acquire more to be acceptable, can be engaged in from a place of centeredness and peace. Each day, we have the opportunity to choose to fully live every moment, instead of wishing it were a different one. As wonderful as the sunshine is, we could not exist without the nourishment of the rain. Even the more difficult storms bring a fresh perspective and the opportunity for transformation that may never have occurred without them. Regardless of the fierceness of the storm, we are likely to feel much more stable and contented as it passes through, if we make the choice to dance while it is raining.