Imagining the Unimaginable
Last week, during my morning beach time, I stood for quite a while and watched a coyote walk around on top of a whale carcass. (An Invitation for You: Let yourself pause for a moment here, allowing a vision of this pairing to form in your mind.)
I had never seen anything like this before… in fact, I had never imagined anything like this before. I invited my thinking mind to be still and quiet so that I could fully integrate this vision of paradox -- of land and sea, of alive and dead, of miracle and just-what’s-happening at 6:15 am. I was glad that there were no other witnesses to this sight; it seemed more dreamlike that way. I was glad that I didn’t have a camera; it felt more relational that way. I was glad that I felt still, calm and in awe; it could be received more graciously in that way, going in a little deeper with each breath.
Since receiving that gift, I have been consciously loosening my hold on life being one way or another. I’ve been noticing more paradoxes and experiencing more capacity to simultaneously hold them … more than I previously imagined.
To state the obvious, we are living in a threshold of transition, trying to find our balance and orientation as so many parts of our lives and our world are in flux. As I shift from either/or to both/and, I am finding a balance point in accepting paradox. I am coming to realize what I didn’t think possible -- that I am an energy-being in an ever-expanding, omni-centric Universe of infinite potential… a.k.a., the Unimaginable. Life and consciousness are everything, everywhere; and I have the capacity to know and sense this. Of course a coyote can walk on a whale carcass… and I can actually witness it happening!
OK, let me describe what this way-of-being actually looks like. I am energized and feeling fully alive. I feel super-inspired to learn and to teach. I find release in laughing and crying. I want to connect with my friends and to be alone. I want to create and to be still. I am fascinated by the tiniest details of a flower and by the vastness of the night sky. I see death and life everywhere.
As I expand my perspective, recognizing more and more of what-is and what-is-possible, I sense more dimensions, I feel more compassion, and I find myself being more flexible. I discover more of my uniqueness as I sense myself as part of a huge ecosystem. I feel like a walking mobius strip -- inside turning into outside, and vice-versa, forming a symbol of infinity.
As I allow more possibilities and trust myself more, I feel curiosity as well as fear, willingness as well as withdrawal, joy as well as sadness, gratitude as well as grief. I have a feeling that I’m living more of the spectrum of my potential. I feel more ready and capable to be present and respond to what is here and what is coming. I find myself living the unimaginable.
At the Studio throughout August (and beyond), we are offering opportunities to deepen relationships, expand consciousness, and activate potential for yourself and the world. Living in a time of major transition, personally and collectively, is living in a realm of possibilities. I invite you to join me in listening for new callings and experiencing the mystery of holding paradox… of any moment.
Marianne
