[blockquote source=”Agnes de Mille”]“Living is a form of not being sure, not knowing what next or how. The moment you know how, you begin to die a little. The artist never entirely knows. We guess. We may be wrong, but we take leap after leap in the dark.”[/blockquote]

Oh my goodness, what a busy day – people shouting to “Get things done..” without really understanding the why.

I’m always baffled by these flurries of chaos. I mean, what is it that’s so darned important that it simply just can’t wait?

And yet, we follow chaos’ storm day after day.

Life is full of uncertainties and challenges, each with the capacity to topple even the most well-rounded of spiritual beings. And, often leaving us to wonder, how on earth might we ever live peacefully when our foundation appears to be constantly crumbling?

Why, sometimes, it may feel as if these changes are a violent river, threatening to pull us under – so then, why shouldn’t we cling to the safety of the ‘shore’? Or rather, that which is most familiar to our soul?

“Life is like stepping into a boat that is about to sail out to sea and sink.” —Shunryu Suzuki Roshi

Indeed, life can very much seem this way. The key is to fight our urge to cling – to open up, and lean in, just a bit.

Why? Because, as Pema Chödrön teaches, fear-based clinging keeps us from the richly more satisfying of human experiences – that of being fully alive.

In her discussion of the “Three Commitments”, we begin to understand the connection between presence and empowerment. That we must be fully and completely present in all moments, even those more challenging ones.

In doing so, we learn how to step fearlessly into that river.

But, how do you learn to relax into a fundamental uncertainty? How do we learn to breathe in this chaos of being human?

[blockquote source=”Pema Chödrön”]’My first teacher, Chögyam Trungpa, used to talk about the fundamental anxiety of being human. This anxiety or queasiness in the face of impermanence isn’t something that afflicts just a few of us; it’s an all-pervasive state that human beings share. But rather than being disheartened by the ambiguity, the uncertainty of life, what if we accepted it and relaxed into it? What if we said, “Yes, this is the way it is; this is what it means to be human,” and decided to sit down and enjoy the ride?”[/blockquote]

My dears, sometimes the answer is easier than you think. Sometimes, the answer is to simply be. Instead of alternating between what we perceive as pleasure and pain; grasping to one…fleeing the other…it’s an endless, futile cycle. And, leaving our energy depleted, and our spirit…no better off.

The Buddha taught that our discomfort arises not so much from the uncertainty itself, but rather, as a result of our resistance to this uncertainty.

When we’re able to understand that everything is always changing, that fixation and stability are an illusion – my dears, that is when the unsettledness finally subsides…

And, our living fearlessly begins.

It’s all a matter of perspective…and a little breath, now and again.

Much love, my dears…blessings to all.