Cycles

Another old journal entry -- here I was playing with the concept of cycles and the way I understand my life to flow through a fairly predictable rhythm. These cycles can be physical, emotional, spiritual, mental, relational, you name it. These cycles unfold over many different time scales, some of them happening within a 4 hour period and others happening over years.

But this flow of having some inevitability enter your life, creating boundaries in response, finding new growth, and then returning to a state of presence seems to be pretty rhythmic for me.

Here's some detail:

Let's start with the inevitability, an unexpected or unpredictable happening. Something you didn't plan for. A happen-stance encounter. A heart break that shocks your system. A surprise visit. A meal that makes you sick. A loving letter from a friend. A song on the radio you haven't heard for 15 years. You get the idea.

When faced with the inevitability, you might drop into a state of awe, surrender, or wonder. You might feel confused and uncertain. You might all of a sudden not know something that you thought you knew before. You might feel like you're in a space of mystery. You might feel receptive, reveling in the gift or wallowing in the pain.

Inevitabilities shock the system, bring change, shake things up. While this is necessary and important, we also need containment and structure in order to thrive. So we arrive at boundaries. The heart break might feel all-consuming to your psyche but you still have daily responsibilities to complete. A friend might have surprised you with a visit but you have to take your dog to the vet in 25 minutes.

From this space, we clarify what we need in response to whatever inevitability we are facing. We speak our preferences and needs, ask for support, determine how we do or do not want to engage. We restructure what no longer works. We decipher what might have been stirred up, and arrive at new understandings. We create boundaries to help us thrive within the new circumstances.

With these new boundaries in place, we have new capacity for growth. Our boundaries have helped us shift into a new state of being, and from there we have access to more potential and power. We begin dreaming, imagining, and striving toward what is calling us forward. We harness our creative energy to bring to life what we long for. We reach and hope and evolve.

And maybe, though I think this state is the most elusive and easy to skip over, after a period of growth we arrive at presence. A space where we can land and notice what we've accomplished. A space where we can soak in and appreciate and observe all that is around us. An invitation to be and be with the beauty and complexity of our lives.

And then, no matter what, inevitability greets us once again. And on and on we turn.

When I originally was creating this in my journal, I had fun choosing one word from each quadrant to make different cycles. I think the words that we could fill into each quadrant are limitless, and that's part of the fun. Each cycle we might face in our lives can have different qualities and attributes.

Maybe this visual is just one way to conceptualize and bring language to what is always present: change.

Curious if you've noticed similar patterns in your life? Have you tried to bring language to these rhythms?