We humans have had a lot to contend with these last couple of years. Our daily routines, our jobs, our notions of health and disease, our ideas about democracy and government have all been upended and/or challenged. In many cases the ground under our feet has been flooded or shaken or burned beyond recognition. Change requires adaptation, and that can be overwhelming, especially when so much is asked of us at once.
Change is a dragon we think we have to fight. But that’s not what it’s all about (more about dragons).
We perceive the status quo as normal, as usual, as comforting, because we know what to expect. Change is challenging even when we think we know what’s coming. But when we don’t . . . . . . it’s bad.
In the past, change happened very slowly. For most of us (who are not historians), Western culture looks much the same from the Renaissance until the 20th century. Then, in just under 70 years, women’s fashion went from floor sweeping gowns to mini-skirts. Transportation went from horse drawn carriages to humans walking on the moon.
The later part of the 20th century brought the internet and cell phones, and then all hell broke loose. This new technology sped the rate of change exponentially. It broadened our potential for new knowledge and experience like nothing ever had before. By increasing our potentials for new experiences, (even virtual ones), it also increased our potential for gaining wisdom, compassion and broadened perspectives. As a result, our collective consciousness has expanded and is now demanding that the world change with it.
These advanced technologies have also made us more receptive to the energy dimension. Even though much the workings of these technologies are not visible or understandable to most of us, we now take for granted that waves of energy can fly through the air to provide us with TV, radio, internet and phone connections that connect us to anyone, anywhere with just a touch on a screen.
But most of our habits and expectations are still rooted in our common knowledge of the physical world, and in that world, stasis seems normal while change seems unusual, unnatural and threatening.
In the physical realm, change also takes work. It is normal and expected that your furniture will stay in the same place unless you work to move it. Even minor changes take force and effort, not to mention emotional and psychological adaptation to the change. No wonder we find change challenging.
In the energy world, however, there is no such thing as stasis. Energy is in constant flow, and when that stops, entropy sets in. And the end point of entropy is death. One of the most profound changes we are experiencing right now is the growing awareness that energy is real, and that even the physical realm is just slowed down energy, and must ultimately be seen as such.
This means that we are going to have to earn to adapt, not just to the obvious current changes going on all around us, but also to the idea that it is change that is normal and natural, and change is happening continuously, even if we may not be consciously aware of it. Without the constant flow of change, all life would cease to exist.
There is a way to relax into the process, however. The key to a gracious, comfortable adaptation to change is to let go of resistance. The dragon is a symbol of our empowerment, and flowing with the energy of life can uplift and empower us if we stop fighting.
Stepping into the flow of energy allows us to adapt to constant motion with ease and grace. It allows us to be carried along effortlessly, avoiding all the snags and rocks encountered when fighting a current.
Think of the difference between guiding a bicycle and lifting a heavy rock. When a bicycle is in motion it takes but a small flick of the wrist to change directions, but lifting a stationary rock takes a major effort. Once you stop a bicycle, not only does it stop moving forward, it falls over and requires extra work to make it stay upright. Gradually we will begin to understand that stepping into the flow of energy takes much less effort and produces much less emotional drama than fighting and resisting.
Part of the problem is our reliance on the use of force. We are used to trying to control the physical world by using force, so we not only use force to make change, we use force to resist change. But force doesn’t work in the energy realm. It just prevents flow, which in turn, creates lots of problems.
It is resistance that make things rough. The more we resist change, the more friction and drama we create in our energy fields, and the more problems that friction will generate. The more you fight change, the more you invite stasis, entropy and discord. Your soul knows what you need and will provide it for you if you just allow it to do so. The flow will take you where you need to go if you just let it. Even if your mind doesn’t yet understand, insight will come if you look for it.
Trusting in the flow is hard, but what may be even harder is allowing ourselves to grieve. Even when change Is for the good, grieving is necessary.
Mourning is not the same as resistance, but it helps to understand that resistance is part of the grieving process. Mourning is grieving what has been, while resistance is fighting to have things stay the same. Mourning involves grief, while resistance usually means anger. Since anger is one of the first steps in the 5 stages of grief (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance), it is inevitable that we will experience some of it along the way. However, it is important to recognize anger and resistance as simply steps in the process rather than the end game.
While mourning is important, it is also emotionally difficult, so we often try to avoid it. We mistakenly believe that as long as we resist, we don’t have to mourn. But mourning actually makes change easier because it paves the way for acceptance. We can’t open ourselves to the new until we have mourned for what has passed.
So much of the chaos we are now experiencing on Earth is caused by resistance. Because the Earth is changing at an amazing rate, human resistance is at an all-time high. There are many who are scared to death of any change and will stop at nothing to fight it. This is why so many heretofore rational, reasonable, and sane friends, relatives and politicians seem to have gone off the rails. This energy of resistance is causing the conflict, chaos and drama that we see all around us, and preventing flow on many levels.
This resistance will be around for a while. But as each of us individually learns to navigate change with grace and ease, collective resistance will wane, the flow will gain momentum, and we will find ourselves living in a world of much greater compassion, abundance and fairness, not to mention grace, beauty, and magic.