This post is dedicated to anyone who is going through something that they didn’t plan. Something that doesn’t–on the surface–feel like an invitation, but if seen another way, can be experienced as a gift.
Let me explain.
One of my professors in college used to say to me, “Sarah, it’s all continuous improvement”. To everything. And while I agree with her, what I feel more accurately expresses what she was trying to convey is that it is all a lesson. That lands better, to me, especially when I think of things that happen in my life that don’t feel much like “improvement”. But I believe that unless and until we can find meaning in meaningless acts; when we can find the lesson in the pain; when we can seek a deeper truth inside each and every experience, and believe—with everything inside of us–that it happened for us rather than to us, we can release our expectations, reduce stress, make peace with what is, live with more purpose, and experience more joy and love in our lives.
Inside crisis, grief, sadness, loss, there are pearls of wisdom; gateways to deeper connection and understanding of ourselves and others. It is a beautiful exchange between teacher and student; life and learner, and I often ask myself what I can take away from each experience; how I might be able to open up a little bit more.
My spiritual journey began 16 years ago, when I turned on the TV to watch Oprah and she was interviewing a man I’d never heard of until that moment, Eckhart Tolle. He was soft spoken and had a German accent and I immediately felt drawn to his teachings. While I couldn’t even wrap my head around all that was being said, I felt a resonance–an inner knowing that truth was being spoken and that I’d better listen closely. So I did. And I went out that day and bought his book, A New Earth.
Inside the pages of that book lay so many a-has; so many truths; ways of thinking and believing that I’d never been exposed to before. My awareness was being raised inside those moments reading his words, and I’d often only be able to read a paragraph before having to stop, digest, allow the thoughts to mix and mingle, fighting to be accepted as my brain tried desperately to compare, compartmentalize and make sense against every belief I’d ever carried.
One of the toughest concepts, for me, is around acceptance. Acceptance and non-judgment. Not weighing something as either “good” or “bad”, but simply accepting the “isness” of it. Tolle explains that stress occurs when we want something to be the way that it isn’t. Imagine how our lives would change if we could remember this! That WE are causing so much of our own stress because we resist was IS. In A New Earth, Tolle goes on to use examples of how when we see things as either “good” or “bad”, we miss the gifts that reside inside each of life’s challenges and opportunities.
In my own life, when I got arrested for a DUI back in 2002, it was the WORST thing I could have imagined happening. It felt like a punishment and it felt like life wasn’t fair and it felt like my life was over. Until I realized it was the greatest gift of my life, I was stuck in pain. That arrest was the rock bottom I needed to push off and rebuild a life. Imagine I had continued to feel punished, seen it as unfair, and continued to drink and abuse my body and mind? I would have missed the gifts inside the challenge. I would have missed out on a whole new life that feels so much more like home, to me.
Living this way–accepting the isness of life–is not always easy. It takes practice. And it takes a type of surrender to what is, rather than our knee-jerk reaction to place a positive or negative value upon whatever is happening.
In this clip, Tolle explains how we can accept what is while also working towards achieving our goals.
I hope it serves you.
Because if we can accept more of what is, we can be fluid–like a river–ebbing and flowing with life rather than feeling so offended or hurt or pained by it; accepting life for what it is and becoming a deeper, more connected piece of it.
Because everything is a lesson and there are so many gifts stored inside.
Because I want you to love your life one bite at a time.
P.S. If you would like more information about my “One Bite At A Time” Group Coaching Program, please know that Registration has closed for this round, but I will be re-running it again in the winter. Please email me at Sarah@SarahTalksFood.com and I will place you on the wait list. From there, we will set up a short phone call to ensure we are a good fit for one another. If I feel I am not the best coach for you, I may refer you to others in my network who might be better suited to help you achieve your goals.
P.P.S. If you haven’t already signed up, you might enjoy my 14 Days of Wellness. Simply enter your name and email address here. It’s free, with no diets, products, challenges or catches (you’ll just start getting a Tuesday email from me and you can unsubscribe at any time). I’d love to stay connected. xo
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