Sometimes life's shadows are caused by our standing in our own sunshine.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

What Makes a Stormy Life

It is not that life is constantly throwing storm upon storm down on us that creates the perception of a stormy life. We are often not living the lives we want to live....are meant to live but it has little to do with  luck or circumstance. One dark shadow is not mysteriously hovering over  some of us and not others creating unfairness in life. 

The sun, in fact, is always there shining brilliantly over all of us ...whether there is cloud cover or not.  We just don't often "experience" it because we are being clouded by our minds.  It is our egos, our unexpressed emotions, our attachments and our belief systems that stand in the way between us and the warmth of God's light. That's all. 

The shadows exist only in our minds. We are standing in our own sunshine and looking down at the shadows on the ground...that we created...and blame life for always darkening or storming through  our worlds.  All we need to do is step out of the way sometimes to see that the light is indeed shining on us too. 

Why do we not just get out of the way? 

We have this pathological need as humans to control, fix, direct and harness all the resources in this physical world...including what God has placed within us. Ego convinces us not to trust in anyone or anything...that our happiness is all up to us and to fate.

"Be prepared for the worse...fight back...defend and attack when you are attacked...make your own light.  Above all:  Be strong and unyielding. " Ego shouts at us.  We resist storms, circumstances and certain emotions because they make us "vulnerable".  We do not like being vulnerable.

Instead of letting go and relaxing into life...whatever she has to offer...we judge, condemn, dig our feet in and resist with all the tension and might we can muster.

 What happens then? 

Do the storms of life back off?  Or do we just break in pieces under the strain we created as all the tree branches did in the ice storm last week? 

Isn't it ironic that the branches that did not break were the ones that graciously accepted the weight of snow and ice and bent accordingly? It is not our vulnerability that weakens us but  our resistance to life.  That resistance and need to fight back and control prevents her from making us stronger and able to bear her weight. Resistance is standing in your own way.

Learn to let go.

In order to feel the sunshine on our faces...we must learn to let go of our resistance and get beyond our old ways of being.  We must give up some of our attachments to certain behaviours, emotions, beliefs and stand tall in our vulnerability.  We must stop creating shadows and let life do what it is meant to do...shine on us with all her glory.

All is well in my world.