courtesy of shefoni.com
Two things…
#1
A wonderful quote on Radiating Blossom (see Things falling…) today. Of course I loved it because it was a “Pema quote”. Right now things may not be falling apart exactly, but I have felt like I had lots of problems I needed to overcome and issues I needed to solve.
“Things falling apart is a kind of testing and also a kind of healing. We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It’s just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen: room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy.”
~ Pema Chodron
It was like a big hug as I opened to the idea that things are just moving apart right now, that they will move back together again soon enough, that there is room for it all, that this is the natural rhythm of life.
#2
As I begin to take on responsibilities related to a new job – I’m moving from a Learning Leader to a Leadership Development position in IBM, there’s a grand invitation to do this, do that, check things off an unending list. I’ve caught myself thoughtlessly moving from one thing to another and feeling drained and completely unsatisfied. I know that is NOT what I want to be creating. I want to be present, intentional, and at choice as I take action. I have a vision for myself in this new role – a graceful dancer, flowing across the floor, limbs extended, feet light as air, a sense of ease…Another vision is a butterfly, and this poem I wrote 6 years ago seems fitting:
Taking Flight
By Vicki L. Flaherty
Like a butterfly
Spreading her wings
Moving gently forward
Engaged in a graceful dance
Floating purposefully
Toward flower rainbows
Weightless as air
Lifted by gentle breezes
Beauty in motion
Lovely poem, Vicki… 🙂
Beautiful Vicki
As beautiful as a butterfly.
Ah my dear Vicki, being the “best face of the company” that she can be, and how overwhelming that is! To hear Pema’s awesome words, and your beautiful poetry, and knowing how lucky we are to have you at work… well, it is not things falling apart, it is things coming together.
Thanks, Carol, David, and Eric. And, Maureen, as the lovely human being that introduced me to Pema, thank you! It’s great to have your encouragement of me being my heart-full self at work!