“Life isn’t as serious
as the mind makes it out to be.” -
Eckhart Tolle
“A light heart lives
long.” -
Shakespeare
Charise’s Turn:
I know the antithesis of this theme, to be heavy hearted.
Times of loss, grief, and illness lend to a heavy heart. About two years ago,
when a loved one was diagnosed with an illness that put on hold her immediate
plans for her life, derailing the start of college education, I sank into a kind of stupor
of defeat. On an afternoon in the countryside, sitting on a rocking chair in
view of the mountains of George Washington National Forest, I rocked and sighed
- repeatedly - to relieve the internal
heaviness I was feeling. This was
an unconscious act. Then the unexpected happened. A butterfly started flittering
around me, and landed on my lips. Have you ever been kissed by a
butterfly? It was startling, amusing, and instantaneously lightened my mood.
The supportive nature of this simple event has proven itself
over and over again, as I see how that dark time was part of a greater transformation. The butterfly was real and also a metaphor; evidence of hope, of change. There
is more and ever increasing lightheartedness in my life. I’ve arrived...at a golden age of fun.
Get Fired Up:
Lighten your heart; all is well (even when it seems
otherwise).
