Falling Apart to Come Together in a New Way

This week I've been listening to people talk. I've tuned in to conversations at the gym where I go for Zumba, the grocery store where I get my veggies and the coffee shop where I drink Earl Grey tea. Here's a bit of what I over heard - just in the last five days.
"This year has been the worst year of my life."

"Everything started falling apart and there was nothing I could do about it."

"I went through so many changes this year it feels like my head is not screwed on the same way. "

"I feel like I've been through a Tsunami."

These statements are not rare ones- at least not this year. I could write pages of examples but I don't think I need to. You are probably saying or hearing some variation of these statements too.

Everywhere people are discussing the Big Changes they are going through.
For a while I thought I knew one person unaffected by major changes this year. I took comfort in thinking that the balance she maintained in her life was possible for all of us. But even she came upon sudden unexpected challenges that moved her to actions she hadn't considered previously.

There is no going backwards.

Our whole species is growing and changing. Outdated systems are falling apart- visible in our outer world and apparent in our individual lives. This is not new news! Yes, we are being challenged to surrender what doesn't work anymore and that can be downright unsettling. This we know!

During times like these it behooves us to look for what is whole and healing amidst apparent turmoil.
Barbara Marx Hubbard calls this time of collective change Humanity Ascending. Not Descending -Ascending! Do we believe that? Will we trust the changes we are going through - RIGHT NOW - are indeed taking us to higher ground not down into the gutter as we, in our deeper fears, imagine.
I remember when the acronym for FEAR was "False Expectations Appearing Real." Neal Donald Walsh offers us a new acronym that invites us into greater responsibility FEAR - "Feeling Excited and Ready." Even and especially when it feels as though everything is falling apart we get choose our attitude and approach don't we?
I often feel my fears are a flip away from excitement. Sometimes I flip back and forth many times in one hour. And sometimes I just flip-flop around and can't seem to get settled anywhere. When life feels most unsettled I turn my attention toward nature for solace. You'll often hear me talk about having a "beach day."

In nature I see the cycle of creation at work. Flowers bud, bloom, decay, turn to seed and fertilize the soil for a next cycle of growth. The lotus pushes its way through mud, travels to the surface of water, rises into the air where finally it blossoms- and then decays again. I've kept roses in a vase long after they blossomed because I find the shedding of their petals beautiful.

Creation is not about making things stay the same.

Life will call our bluff if we attempt to keep our lives static. Especially now - when the speed of creation is moving so quickly.

We need to accept that sometimes things fall apart - so they can come together in a new- and BETTER way.

We don't need to know "HOW" changes will create better experiences for us. But we can do our part to LISTEN DEEPLY AND STAY CONNECTED.

Right now as we complete a year of big changes we have the opportunity to release what isn't working for us. And as we lean into our New Year we can bring along our trust that life is good and wise. The very best is ahead of us.

Let go. Good and More Good is Coming!