On being more like water…

Water flowing over rocks

‘Water is the softest thing, yet it can penetrate mountains and earth. This shows clearly the principle of softness overcoming hardness.’ (Lao Tzu)

Hi everyone

When you get hurt by people, by life, by kicking your toe against something, it’s difficult not to harden yourself against more hurts and disappointments. The more sensitive you are, the more likely you are to experience the vagaries of life in an eroding kind of way.

The problem is that you then tend to steel yourself against further hurts by becoming harder and more unyielding. Being vulnerable and open can feel like exposing yourself too much. I confess that this is the proverbial Achilles heel for me. I find it challenging not to sometimes pull a shell over myself like a crab and peep out at the world from my protective covering.

Then my pesky intuition whispers gently in my ear that this might not be the way. Well thanks a bunch intuition, now I have to find a better way to respond! I know I’m not always getting it right but sometimes just being aware that there might be another way opens a different door.

Protecting yourself sensibly is not a bad thing as life can be dangerous and unpredictable, but filling up with emotional cement is self-defeating. It sets in a way that inhibits emotions, flexibility and real connections. It might make you feel safe in the short term but it doesn’t work in the long term.

Instead of trying to be like stone, what about being more like water? Water is fluid and yielding but you’ll still get where you’re trying to go as water finds a way. Flow around the obstacles and set-backs of life like water flows around rocks.

As the saying goes, ‘nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.’ (Lao Tzu)

Take care and be kind to each other

Janine

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