This morning when I stepped outside to walk the dog I noticed that the ground had hardened significantly. I marveled at this because just the other day it was soft and springy and gave easily under the pressure of my footsteps. This morning, it was hard-packed earth, not quite like concrete but hard nonetheless. I realized that this is yet another sign that the earth, at least in this hemisphere, is getting ready for winter; that the ground has to harden in order to be able to hold the snow when it falls. Otherwise, the snow would simply melt into the ground. The hardening is just another way that the earth prepares for the changes to come.
I love this awareness. The earth prepares. She adapts and adjusts literally overnight. There is a lot I could learn from her about being flexible and adaptable to change. What is becoming clearer to me is that through the various seasons of my life, whether I was aware of it or not, I was adapting and adjusting to the subtle as well as more obvious changes around me. Metaphorically speaking, the earth hardened when I needed to retain something at the surface level, when at another time I might need for it to soak deeply in. My various life experiences–the “good,” the “bad” and the “ugly”–have all woven a different color thread in the tapestry of my life that not only add to the richness and texture of who I am, but also have prepared me for the next leg of the journey. (Sorry to be mixing metaphors…long day.)
Three years ago, when I hit some significant bumps in my life, I initiated my “bookend” writing practices–a morning journal I titled, “Writing My Way to Clarity,” and this daily gratitude blog, which I’ve almost always written in the evenings. In my morning journal I spent a lot of time writing about my “what’s next,” describing in some detail some important characteristics I needed to have in whatever work I would be doing in my future. At that time, as I found myself unexpectedly job hunting, I took the time to really think through basic things like my life purpose and the overall meaning of my life and my place in the universe. To my surprise I didn’t fully resolve that and I just started “Book 14” of “Writing my Way to Clarity.” I’m much clearer now, but still have a few things to work out.
I am oh so grateful, as I’ve stated many times before in this blog, for the path that has led me to where I am today. I’ve been aware, even in the midst of some fairly intense circumstances, obstacles, roadblocks, setbacks, failures, etc. that in spite of everything I would be alright. That assurance is what keeps me relatively stable and steady when the challenges arise. The truth is I couldn’t have gotten to where I am now and headed toward my what’s next without having experienced the pain and trials of the past few years. They have absolutely made me who and what I am in this very moment. A long ago writer said it this way, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” I for sure have been trained by the “chastening” and as odd as it might sound I’ve learned to embrace rather than resist or run from it.
So yes, I am grateful for the bumps in the path as well as the smooth spots. And while for a time it has felt more rocky than smooth, I am looking forward to things leveling out a little more in the not-too-distant future. In the meantime, in this moment, I will continue to do my best with whatever comes and approach it all, as best I can, with a grateful heart. May it be so.
