I’m Lost, What Do I Do?
As I stood in the shower, feeling the water cascade over my face, I uttered these words……I am so hopelessly lost right now in my life. I have no idea where I’m going and I have no idea where I’m at. And just like that thought came into my head, the solution came also. If you are lost, stop right where you are and sit down and wait. OMG, what?! Wisdom in the shower? I don’t know about you, but I do work through some things in the shower each morning. I practice Reiki and use that time as a meditative self healing and cleansing time, both physically and mentally. When the ‘sit down and wait’ solution popped into my head, I had to chuckle to myself a little. The answer is so simple, but doing it is the hard part. Anxiety makes me want to run around and look under every rock, behind every tree and spin around like a squirrel until I’m exhausted and no closer to finding the path. Basic survival skills say that whenever you find yourself lost in the woods, don’t keep walking thinking you know where you are going. The National Forest Foundation provided this very insightful post that originated in 1946, What To Do When Lost In The Woods
Those same words are true in the physical plane, spiritual plane and even the emotional plane. I’m of the age where things are changing for me. My adolescence is gone and the age of motherhood is quickly leaving me. I’m almost 42 years old and I can feel the change of the crone coming. I believe this transition can last for several years as my body begins to morph into the next phase of my journey. And right now, I’m lost AF. Ha, that’s for my millennial readers. I will also take the advise from the old-timers and not keep wandering around in my world in complete panic, trying to find my way back to equilibrium. I will use my head and sit down. I will clear my mind and focus on calming down and practice the pause. I will look at my current situation, whatever it is, and assess it objectively, not emotionally. I will look at my surroundings and build a campfire and make camp, maybe stay here for a bit. And with a more level head and way less fear and panic, I will begin to see that I’m not lost at all. That I’m exactly where I need to be at this moment in time. That if I keep grabbing for that object in the pond, it will continue to float away from my grasp. If I just sit there and relax and enjoy the scenery around me for a little while, that object will casually float to shore and I will be right there relaxing when it does. With that, I’ll leave you with a little poem.
Oh faint light at the edge of darkness
How I wish to see your beautiful face
I’m so lost in the wilderness of my mind
I can’t seem to find my way
The path is hidden, thought I know it’s there
My head is full and my soul is weighted with despair
Please oh gentle light at the edge of darkness
Bring your illumination to me
And with your light, may I begin to see