Life's Peaks & Valleys

The peaks and valleys of life is what make life exhilarating. But more often than not, we humans are more excited by life’s peaks than valleys. It is natural to enjoy the good things in life and cringe at the difficult issues of life. Life’s seeming imperfections; I find are the very perfections of life. The very things we dread as we experience them are the very things that shape our lives into a richer existence. I have to say that the valleys of life are usually a downer because we are creatures who love our comfort and anything that disturbs our comfortable life is usually an unwelcome disruption.

As a fellow human experiencing this wondrous journey unfolding, I am learning to welcome the valleys along with the peaks of my life. I am learning to bravely embrace my life in its entirety. Life is not what we plan for, life is what happens. The ‘good’ and the ‘bad’ happen to us as we journey through life. The key I find is not in the ‘good’ or ‘bad’ but rather in our ability to embrace our experience for what it is. When we watch the news and hear about the natural disasters or some crime or accident that has happened, mostly we are moved by others experience but it is not us – it is others; it is not happening here, it is happening out there.

For those who live in the east coast of the US, lately we have been getting some rough weather ranging from unexpected earthquake to the devastating effects of hurricanes. I had a personal encounter with hurricane Irene as a forty plus oak tree fell on my house with an 8 foot branch coming through the bedroom ceiling. To say that it was stunning and freighting will be an understatement. The lesson I learned from the whole experience is how life is fragile and how it can change in an instant. Of course, I was very grateful that it was not any worse than what it was but I also was amazed by God’s protection. When nothing happens, we don’t often think about what can potentially happen to us and our families. When we get a glimpse of how close we came to danger and how our lives have been spared then of course we are grateful for God’s protection over our lives.

Experiencing a natural disaster at a smaller scale in my own backyard made me realize just how many lives are affected by such incidents. It made it real and I could relate to others who have been through similar ordeals. Valleys, not particularly exciting but if we learn to embrace them we find a gem in our experience. In hindsight, we realize we are better for our many valleys. Valleys humble us and keep us grounded. Valleys make us more humane. Valleys build character in us, making us better people. Looking back at my many valley experiences, I realize I would not change any of them as they have been the greatest teachers of my life.

The good things of life are of course the blessings we hold dear. We cherish them and we enjoy them as we should. They enrich our lives and bring balance to our sometimes challenging journey. But most of us do take a lot for granted and we forget to take stock of our blessings overwhelmed by the daily challenges of life. Nothing, absolutely nothing is to be taken for granted. From the fact that we are here experiencing life in this dimension to everything single thing in our life can change in a split second. So as I coach myself often, I encourage you to take time to notice your loved ones and tell them how much they mean to you. And express your gratitude to God for his many blessings. If you are reading this and thinking I don’t have much to be grateful for, then I challenge to write at least seven things that you can think of that are good in your life. It can be small or big, just find things to be thankful for.

If you are going through a difficult time today, I encourage you to look around and find things to be grateful for.  There is no one single human life that is not layered with blessings. In some instances, we have to be diligent in looking for the blessings in the face of the obvious challenges of life. I would say gratitude is often the missing ingredient in our 21^st century high tech existence.  Be grateful for everyday things such as clean drinking water and food on your table. The more you practice the path of gratitude, you realize you have more to be grateful for after all and that allows you to embrace your life more joyfully!

P.S. I realize it has been months since I last blogged. Life happens and sometimes we get so caught up with the everyday stuff that we forget to prioritize. I know I did. Friends that read my blog have been encouraging me to get back to blogging. I am grateful for your words of encouragement, especially to my dear friend Rahel.