The Valley

To get from one phase of life to another we have to pass through a transition zone (“the valley”).  No one wants to go through a valley, it is dark, ominous, hard to navigate, and generally has little to be desired.

But the more disciplined traveller knows what is found there is worth those risks.

And, ultimately, there is no other way to get to the place we want to go.  We have to go through the valley, the transition zone.  It is simply unavoidable.  But take solace!  There in the deep darkness of the valley is the very thing we desperately need for the journey: grace.

And a particular kind of grace: the grace of forgetfulness.  Let me explain.

We relate memory and the ability to remember with a keen or sharp mind.  But remembering too much may be a problem, especially for moving forward.  (*Most of us have been directly affected by someone enduring various forms of memory loss.  I am sensitive to that. However heart-rendering it may be to watch, suspend that to consdier there may actually be some benefits to this memory loss for them.)

The ability to forget is important, both not to “compete” with our own former successes, but also not to dwell on past failures.  To forget some things is a grace we desperately need to move into the future.  And where do we find this grace of forgetfulness?  In the valley.

Only there, in the valley of transition — in the darkness, the fear, the lostness, do we find the courage to let go of what is past and keep walking into the night.  Into the unknown.  Into whatever is coming next.  The survival of our dreams is at stake.  Our very hope, our light.

The seeds of the future are in that valley.  There are no shortcuts.

Be sure, the valley is dark.  It’s called the valley “of the shadow of death” for a reason.  Death happens there.  But for the courageous sojourner, on a mission to find clarity and voice, the death is welcomed.  We invite its sure and certain end to a particular version of self.

This is the unique tension of being human.  We are trained to seek happiness and like who we are, and where we are going.  If we are good at doing that we can create a life we are happy with.  But no matter the stage ,or the place in life, once we find “it,” life can quickly turn toxic.

Our arrival at whatever version of our “best life” can be very short-lived.

But take heart, it’s meant to be.

It is temporary.  And when we try to set up camp in a temporary station, it gets ugly…quick.  We can not stay, no matter how much we like a particular station.  Life keeps calling us into the future, into the next phase of our transition.  No matter what we do.

Time keeps on slipping.

This is the perhaps the tragic nature of life on earth, for now.  Nothing is permanent.  Our “best” life is not the goal (or is a slippery one at best).  A next phase is coming, before we are ready.  Before, even, we finish this one.

We are in motion.  On motion.  In process.  Moving from one phase of transition to the next.  We keep moving!  We must keep moving.  This requires trust (faith).  Keep walking.  Despite the evidence to the contrary.  In spite of our fears, and the reality of our ultimate transition.

Nothing lasts for long.  But take heart.  Nothing lasts for long.

Look straight ahead.  Keep pushing.  In the future, the future of your path, are good things.  Very good things.  But the only way to get to them is through the exit door.  Don’t get attached to this room.  The Way is not a place.  The Way is a path.  And yours is leading you out.

Go!  Now. Take your path.  The door will be opened unto you.  GO!