I heard it again this week. And whether you’ve been a part of this community and have been intentional about expanding your capacity to be present to challenging situations, or you’ve just come upon this writing recently following a painful experience – or perhaps a series of them – one thing I know is this cry of frustration is familiar and SO understandable.
Trolls … by spoken word artist Shane Koyczan |
It’s easy to find ourselves acting out in response to these challenges in life, or lashing back at the trolls – those wounded ones who’ve appeared in their latest form.
“I know obstacles, but that doesn’t mean your path stops being your path … you develop the capacity to stand with inarguable, life given expertise when you meet the obstacles in front of you as if they are your partners in self-cultivation … if instead of things that are insurmountable they became what makes you great, or helps you pull your greatness, draws it out of you, and you live it so people can see it, and smell it, and feel it, and taste it along with you – then a boulder is not a boulder, and death is not death, and challenge is your personal Ph.D.
… these are the kinds of things that we meet and make our dancing partners, our creative partners. … Holding confidence when it feels like the ground underneath you is shifting sands is a big, freakin’ deal, and more people need that today than anything. So I would really be surprised if this isn’t your path, I think this is your path saying “OK, let’s step up!””
Sometimes, though, in our attempts to be ‘good’ or enlightened people, not wanting to be ‘like them’ (those ‘bad’ or unenlightened ones) we try to ignore, shut, or shout down our instinctive, often emotionally charged responses. But we do this at our peril. ALL our emotions are important! They carry energy and information we need to access, tap in, and pay attention to.
Shane Koyczan’s “Instructions for a Bad Day” |
![]() |
Whatever form it takes, in addition to our individual practice, a community where we can be supported as we continue our exploration and understanding of the cues and clues these Mastery Path experiences, and our responses to them might be offering us, is enormously valuable.
If you’re feeling curious about exploring being in community, engaging it in your life, and having this kind of support around as you develop your capacity to respond to the challenges you experience in a more life-giving way, I’d love to have you join us. We are here, doing our own work and would love your company on the journey!
Being present to the courage and commitment in each one of you, as together we ride the roller coaster of life, continues to both challenge and inspire me to expand my own capacity for standing, and stepping out.