There’s an expression that whenever God / the Universe / Great Spirit / Holy Moly / (insert favorite name here) closes a door another one opens. What do we do while we are in the hallway? Many of us may feel this way at the moment. A great change has come upon us and we are most likely right in the middle of it. We don’t know when it’s going to end or what might happen tomorrow.
I live in Coastal GA. When a hurricane is coming, there is a fairly definite idea of when and where it might hit, how long it will last, and when it’s going to be over. Not so with our current situation. With the weather we have lots of tools to use in our predictions and forecasts. What we are experiencing now is all uncharted territory.
It’s interesting that we are using the same term to describe sheltering-in-place with what we do here in Savannah during a storm: we “hunker down”. What shall we do while we are hunkering down here in the hallway?
Here’s a quote from Buddhist Nun Pema Chodron that I find helpful:
Anxiety, heartbreak, and tenderness mark the in-between state. It’s the kind of place we usually want to avoid. The challenge is to stay in the middle rather than buy into struggle and complaint. The challenge is to let it soften us rather than make us more rigid and afraid. Becoming intimate with the queasy feeling of being in the middle of nowhere only makes our hearts more tender. When we are brave enough to stay in the middle, compassion arises spontaneously. By not knowing, not hoping to know, and not acting like we know what’s happening, we begin to access our inner strength.
Pema Chodron, American Tibetan Buddhist
This thought from spiritual teacher Gangaji really speaks to me:
Whatever we fully embrace always reveals the peace that we were seeking through all our attempts to avoid discomfort.
Gangaji
Our invitation is to be present with whatever arises. Master Teacher Jesus instructed us to “resist not evil”. This idea used to confuse me and I now understand that my suffering comes in resisting what is. I may not be able to change circumstances or conditions in my life, but I can work on changing my response to them.
This is the good news: all outer conditions are temporary. We become accustomed to routines and we rely on them. However, our whole way of life can change overnight, and what is happening in the world right now is proof of that. This too shall pass.
And there is more good news: something higher and better is emerging. Order comes forth from chaos. Resurrection follows crucifixion. The phoenix rises from the ashes. Old ways of being are falling away, and a newness and a freshness is arising.
So while we are in the hallway hunkering down, let’s be kind and gentle; not only with others, but most importantly with ourselves. It’s natural to feel uncomfortable right now. Instead of allowing ourselves to become preoccupied with what is going on around us, we can sit with our feelings, pay attention to our thoughts, and find the peace and stability that comes from being present to what is happening within us.