The delicate beauty of being
embracing duality
In times when our life is fragile such as in personal illness, near death, financial crisis or loss of a relationship, it levels us to cherish what we have and to engage with what really matters. Fragile being the quality of being delicate or vulnerable. There is the intensity of the circumstance which needs room to process. Alongside this often is also an invitation to a deeper enrichment of life’s fragility, beauty and our mortality.
Our loves and passions return to us with sharper clarity when we are without it. My yearning to be outside when I was in hospital was a stark realisation how much I love being outdoors. Your general modus operandi gets challenged on many levels and thus presents an opportunity to contemplate yourself and your life. This subject many people may not wish to address before the time comes. It can be a topic worth exploring before a significant life event arrives. There are many ways to gain insight and embody the essence of life’s beauty. One way is through loss, suffering and threat to our mortality. Other ways are through contemplation with less intense situations.
Chinese philosopy of the Yin and Yang shows us that polarities only exist because of the other. There is fullness of the Yin that shifts into the fullness of the Yang. In Light/darkness, Hot/Cold, Health/Illness, Happiness/Sadness, Life/death. This duality invites us to embrace it as it arrives. In completeness and harmony as does the circle that encompasses the yin/yang. That which just is.
Within the yin yang fish
yin in the yang and yang in the yin
Neither requires a mind of judgement as to good or bad. It becomes an experience to truly behold. As clear as the crystal waters and profoundly delicate as a rose. It may feel like the intensity of the circumstance overides the ability to see the beauty in the chaos. Nevertheless, beauty awaits whether it flickers in or beams so bright, you are in a position to open yourself to it in it’s abundance…as it is eternally there. It is a transformative opportunity missed if one closes to the beauty in fragility and suffering.
Every moment becomes so precious when the life is challenged. Here lies the door to boundless beauty this life holds. It also enlightens us into a compassionate collective interconnected field that is beyond the material. The gift lies here. In my life, living on the edge of uncertainty with possibility of cancer recurrence shifts me into a choice of fear or appreciation of what I have in this moment of life. As I have moments of fear, it is more often than not that I take a deeper breathe, soften and lighten my load. Cook with joy, walk alongside warm souls and create for a better way. I take ease with much comfort that grounds myself completely here to cultivate what matters most. This focus stands by the face of fearful anxiety. When my friend lost her dear partner to cancer she described how her senses felt magnified whereby colors were richer, food was tastier and the air was fresher. Beyond this, she felt more alive and grateful! The openness to which she experienced loss is one I appreciate greatly in her.
Reflections in dark emotional intensity are reminders to embrace each moment more in the light. As days pass I realise the expansive freedom of choice before me to live and breathe with arms wide open to life’s duality. Present in the delicate beauty of being.
“ In the midst of darkness, light persists “
- Mahatma Gandhi
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The beautiful lightness in the dark
and the darkness within the light
is complete
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💌✍🏼 I encourage you to share your thoughts below