Ralphie Rough Road

After a meditation session on flow, I have been thinking about flow.  They based the meditation on visualizing a river flowing. This river flowed in a circular pattern.  With no beginning and no end, it depicted our lives. We have two choices.  Fight against the current, which represents challenges in our life, or lay back and float along with the challenges.  The river will continue to flow forward regardless of our actions.  It’s an interesting analogy of our lives.

A large part of my life I’ve fought against the flow.  When things do not go my way I become frustrated, irritable and downright bitchy.  A month ago I found myself down and frustrated with the events of recent weeks. I was struggling against an exceptional current.  This comparison of life with a flowing river made me realize although I am a high-strung person it does not mean I must remain that way.

This is an epiphany.  Part of me dismissed this trait as something I could not and should not change.  It defines me, it’s my personality type. Why should I change that? Then I realized this represents me fighting against the current of life.  I need to flow with life more. Just as nature and the universe flow naturally.

When I stop fighting against events, life is easier to navigate.  However, going with the flow of life can be tough.  Therein lies the conundrum. How do we align ourselves to our greater good?  It’s a good question.

Recently, I looked into energies.  Energy makes up our entire universe, including our physical bodies.  It’s a subtle thing but one we should attune ourselves to. This journey I have been on with yoga, meditation and now writing are all pointing me to inner work.  This inner work will point me in the right direction and help my flow in life.

When something goes wrong, I need to lie back, relax and go with the current.  The universe is more intelligent than I am.  I need to stop and listen. The guidance will come.

For example, a month ago when I noticed a loud noise coming from the passenger rear side, I became overwhelmed.  Frustration set in. What now, I thought. How could something else go wrong? I said to myself, everything will be fine.  Upon arriving home we discovered the shock broke.  With both vehicles broke down, we had to cancel plans.  At first I fought against it.  Finally, I gave into the current and listened. The universe was telling us to stay at home.  We enjoyed an evening on the patio drinking a few beers, catching up, and listening to music.  To sit on the patio with nowhere to go and listen to the surrounding forest sounds was priceless.

Despite things not going our way, there is peace in riding the current of life.  Trust in that path will set us free.