HolistiSci

Rituals. Routine. They have the ability to keep you on your path and aligned, or distract you from where you’re supposed to be. I’ve always loved the feel of a good schedule and routine. It was always how I made sure I didn’t forget to do anything. It meant making absolute sure that I worked an exact amount of time each day, that I took the right supplements at the right time, that I everything was perfectly in its place. Or was it?

Being tied to a routine also means that if something goes wrong or if something is out of alignment that stress creeps in. Because suddenly you feel like you’re out of control. Guess what? You never were in control. The saying goes that “life is what happens when you’re busy making plans.” So true.

A couple of weeks ago I opened YouTube to listen to some music while cooking. Instead, I saw a tarot reading video that my soul would not allow me to ignore. Much of what she was saying was things I’d heard before, places my soul had been and learned and grown from. And then the phrase came that I knew I was meant to hear: radical acceptance. And that’s where I’m trying to be right now.

I’m trying to be in a place where everything is perfect. Perfect in its imperfection. Because that imperfection and those frustrating situations are still serving a role. And they go by with much more ease when you don’t judge them and accept them just as they are. I’m beginning now to view my life as a sports commentator. I see interactions and emotions as they are happening and while I might get swept up for a moment’s time, I can now consciously see that I need to re-center. And so I do and move on.

A few mornings ago in between waking for suhoor and waiting for the first early morning prayer of the day, I sat in mediation and felt into the pain in my shoulders that I’ve been feeling day in and day out for weeks. And when I invited the light in and asked it to tell me what that pain was, it showed me an image of me riding on a horse galloping off. I could feel the freedom of the moment and the wind in my hair. Radical acceptance means going for the ride no matter where it’s taking you. Enjoying that moment for what it is on this journey.

In recent weeks I’ve been thinking about the word enjoy a lot. We also speak French where we live and so I couldn’t help but break it down to mean “in joy” – to be in joy. To be in the vibration of joy. And my nephew teaches me daily about what that means. He was born with a very complicated heart defect. Three years ago he underwent heart surgery. He’s stable, but not thriving. He struggles to breathe. And the amount of care and surgeries he may need to continue life may not be sustainable or in his best interest. Yet he is FILLED with JOY. Everything he does throughout the day is with the intention to seek his own joy. And as I ground myself in radical acceptance, I look to him as a guide. I join him in sharing his joy. In being in joy with him.

Because it’s all perfect. Perfectly imperfect. Each and every moment of love, joy, pain, sorrow, and loss. Our human bodies and personalities struggle to feel the perfection. But if we dig deep into our grounding roots and find radical acceptance, all is perfectly well and rooted in love. Dig in. Cry. Find gratitude. And forgiveness. Find joy.