Water

I love water…the oceans and how, sometimes, it’s completely still and peaceful. Other times, it’s filled with waves and crashes along the shore. And while the state of the ocean may change, the ocean itself isn’t really changing. The ocean doesn’t try to get rid of its waves or calm the currents. Instead, they just move and happen with the understanding that its part of what it means to be the ocean.

And so it is with the mind; sometimes our thoughts are calm and still. Other times, they are forceful and destructive. Either way, it’s part of what it means to be human.

I’m one of those people who is perpetually trying to control the ocean; to will it into submission (which, might I add, has never worked). But I’m learning these days to give my mind permission. To let it rush forth, to let it crash along the shore, to let it rise and fall in its own rhythm. Instead of trying to hold it all captive, I’m trying to remind myself that my job in those moments is simply to make a choice; either swim against the current or ride the waves.

Admittedly, it’s not an easy thing for me to do. My instinct is to swim away and find a calmer harbour. But that generally leaves me exhausted and in a constant state of “doing.” Because no shore is free of waves all the time.

And so I’m learning to stay. Through the crashing. Through the tides. Through the discomfort of experiencing a force larger than myself. And I’m learning to remind myself; it will pass. It always does. Regardless of the storm that may take place, there is always stillness to be found in the ocean.