The Temporary Nature of Struggle

Tamara from my Calm meditation app recently told a story that went something like this...

A farmer wakes up one morning and realizes his horse has run away. His neighbors cry, "Oh, what a misfortune!" 

"Maybe", replies the farmer. 

The next day the horse returns with three wild horses. "Oh, how fortunate!" his neighbors cry. 

"Maybe", says the farmer. 

The farmer's son tries to ride one of the horses but he is bucked and breaks his leg, leaving him with a permanent limp. 

"Oh, what a misfortune!" state the neighbors. 

"Maybe", says the farmer. 

The army shows up in the village, recruiting all able bodied men to fight in a war. They pass over the son with the limp. 

"Oh, how fortunate!"-the neighbors

"Maybe." -the farmer

This story made me think about two important ideas.

First, nothing is permanent.

Last week I was very busy at work-I felt like there was not enough time in the day to complete necessary tasks (especially while sticking to my 8 hours of sleep rule). 

But I knew, even in the height of busy-ness, that the experience would pass. I did what I had to do and then, sure enough, I gradually eased back into my normal relaxed life. Now I'm sitting on the other side of the experience and I can barely remember what it felt like, even though at one point I'm pretty sure I almost cried.

The key was that I knew the experience was temporary. This was a busy little blip in the grander scheme of my life. Truly understanding the shifting nature of our universe allowed me to be okay in the midst of what felt like chaos. 

The second thing this story highlights is that we get to choose how we respond to events. 

Events aren't inherently "good" or "bad". They just are. We assign the meaning to them. That's why we can all have such different interpretations of the same event. 

Whatever you are struggling with right now, know this:

It is temporary, and you get to choose how you how you interpret the struggle. 

You have the power to release the struggle (you can start RIGHT NOW!), and you also have the ability to re-frame the struggle. For example, maybe it's not a "struggle", but an exciting opportunity to practice all the skills you've learned on your journey. 

As always, I am here to help! Let me know in the comments, through an email (katie@awakenyourglow.com), or in the contact space how I can serve you in your transformation! I look forward to hearing from you. 

♥♥♥