Rebirth

The labor pains have begun…

To be free of perpetual sleep; free of the darkness, the nothingness; knowing that I was not meant for this place, this temporary home. I sensed there was so much more, and I could feel this safe haven preparing the way for me. The spasms of newness guided me toward the bright light that I could not explain.

My senses switched on and I soaked in everything at once. At first, it was all a blur, then my mind awakened and I was ushered into a strange new world. To have great fear and wonder at the same time; to know that I am helpless … not able to crawl or walk or even see the future. It was a scary feeling. Yet I was alive.

Part of me felt like I had been here all along; like I had no beginning and could not even contemplate my end. There was too much to learn and experience to visualize the conclusion. It could be 1 year or 10 years or 30 years or who knows how long.

Now the connection is broken. The cord is cut. I no longer depend on the linkage to another human; to another time. I must begin to make my own way. To carve out my destiny. Though there may be others there to direct me, the path is still my own.

I was born into a world that I had no hand in creating, yet it is mine to possess and change as I will it. It is a liberating feeling. Now all I sense is potential and the swaddling arms of the world.

Yet someday this broken connection will come with a cost. There is no going back. The comforting arms and soft voice that always let me know that I was fine, that I was blessed and my reward secure, will no longer be there. I will truly be like a ship adrift on the sea. I must will myself to survive until I see the shore.

We enter this world alone, with a slap on the ass. We begin the journey with a crowd of onlookers, even as we arrive here on our own terms. We leave the same way, with a host of mourners seeking to illuminate our exit. Chants and prayers, songs and tears will soon be ours, but before that day, we will take those last wobbly steps…we must face this final journey alone.

If I could go back I would, into the safety of the womb and the warmth of never having to face the pangs of this cruel life. But I am already here, and the only thing that will save me is a rebirth. So once again I sense the labor pains, feel the relentless contractions pushing me forward to enter a new world.

Soon my path will be illuminated and my new destination clearly in view. Many more rebirths will guide me into the future of my choice. Only then will my journey be traversed, my strivings no more, and my soul prepared for rest.

Reawakening

Life is a series of re-births, set in motion by the changing seasons and ebbs and flows of our lives – a universe of choices lay before us and we are in charge of either taking the reins or choosing the easy chair.

Re-births spawn a new life on distant soil, where we begin the process of sorting the dirt, breathing the air, claiming our plot of land, and making friends with the natives – once we lose the ability to re-spawn we run out of lives and the game ends. This is the only life we have, there are none to spare.

Pulling up roots can cause a season of trauma; it takes time to adapt to the local flora and fauna until we feel the privilege to call it home again – yet when roots are pulled up repeatedly, the damage makes it too difficult to grab hold of the confidence we need to settle in. A flood of water, love, and nutrients is required.

Your childhood home is a place of comfort but one to which you can never return; the winds have changed and the forest of your youth has now become a parking lot – you can never re-live your childhood adventures and moving closer will not guarantee that any of your past memories will nourish you or give you peace.

The winds of change will continue to carry you where they may until you are confident that the moorings have taken root – an immense mission is spread before you that will push and mold you in unknown ways and immerse you in the novel skills you need to meet the trials and challenges with confidence.

How long this new and final mission will last is completely up to you - when your sea legs are finally on solid footing, your duties are complete, and your work there it is done, it is time to leave the world of work to the younger generation.

Work is an addiction that must be weaned off slowly and as you mature you will sense when your body of work has run its course and it is time to take your well-deserved rest – then and only then can you feel assured that you have made your indelible mark on the world.

For this lofty and life-changing process to move forward, it must begin with a reawakening.  

Are you ready for the labor pains?