Lately, I feel like the world has had a slightly harsh and negative energy surrounding it. Each person I speak with seems like they’re having some sort of major crisis in their lives.
At times, when I hear so much negativity, I swear, I just want to hide under my covers with my Shih Tzu, Arlo, turn off my phone and just check out.
For those that know me, they know I prefer to live in the land of butterflies and rainbows. I know, I know…this is not reality. I get it. But I wish it was — I really do.
Whether it’s their health, marriage, relationships, job, et cetera, tons of people are struggling right now. For a while I thought it was just a few people around me — but no, it’s a lot of people, a lot of people everywhere.
The general theme these days seems to be one of perpetual unhappiness and discontentment. People are struggling to find peace in their current lives.
So the question I really have is, how do we find joy in the mundane? How do we find happiness when we are not where we want to be? How do we find tranquility while bored and restless and maybe even ill?
The first thing that we should all know is that everyone experiences one form of unhappiness or despair at some point in their lives. The fact is that nobody leads a perfect life; you do know that, don’t you? No matter how big the home, bank account, career or smile…every single one of us has to deal with some form of poison at some point in our lives.
Truth.
I like to refer to this point in time as “limbo land” or as my Kabbalah teacher would refer to it as, “the abyss”. It’s basically when you’re stuck between two realities; kinda like a car engine stuck between two gears. Eventually you do come out of it and either shift up to the higher gear or down to the lower one.
But it’s those in-between stages that wear on our souls. Sometimes these phases can last a very long time. More often than not, these phases come into our lives to teach us lessons. One thing for certain is that we are always stronger after they have been taught. (Maybe a little bruised inside also)
I actually went online and looked up the basis to why ” car gears get stuck.” It’s funny because I don’t think there is anyone out there that is less mechanical than me, but what I found out was interesting in how it related to life.
So for all you men out there that read my blog (and, yes, I’m proud to say that 35% of my readership is male-based) here’s what I found.
Transmission gears get stuck when there is a breakdown in transmission fluid from driving the car hard, worn-down synchronizers or alignment issues.
I’m not 100% sure what I just wrote, but I think I can translate it to how it pertains to life.
Just like a car, we all can get “stuck” between two gears, only our gears are phases in our lives. When we are in between two chapters (gears) and we are trying desperately to shift to the next stage prematurely, we breakdown our energy (transmission fluid) and drive our own selves right down to the ground. Our core winds up out of total alignment and we find ourselves jammed, alas, causing us to be stuck.
Eventually in life, everything gets “unstuck”. But it does so on it’s own time schedule and not one minute before.
My mother used to say, “It’s a time in life when it’s neither fish nor fowl”. Looking back I often wonder where exactly was the beef in that quote…but nonetheless-
When we are out of alignment, it makes it very difficult to feel safe and secure and to trust our own abilities to survive and prosper in the world.
None of us enjoy being in that in-between point in our lives- but this is inevitably the very point in which we have the most growth potential and ability to realign ourselves to be newer and better people.
Blah, blah, blah…I know, I know. It all sounds good and enlightening and spiritual, but when you’re really stuck, it’s so hard to see the light. It’s so hard to get out from under the rock and life looks hopeless.
I don’t have the answers or solutions, and I’m certainly not preaching that I do, but I will say one thing for sure, “Tough times don’t last, but tough people do.”
So do whatever you must to get to the next gear. Whether it’s time, therapy, soul searching, a retreat, a new job, new spouse, new dog, be proactive in realigning yourself.
And remember when all else fails…
Go find a hot mechanic to look under your hood.
Until Next Week,
Love,
Karin
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