Facing our fears...

It seems to me that there is a lot of fear out there in the world today...

We are fearful about the economy, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and maybe even the outcome of the upcoming elections. We are told that we need to fear the people coming over our boarders from the south, terroists from the east, wildfires in the west, and melting icecaps in the north. Everywhere we turn there seems to be a reason to be afraid.

Fear is a natural human response to change and the unknown. It is part of what has helped us to survive as a species. Our ancestors wouldn't have lasted very long without a genuine fear and respect for the saber-toothed tiger just outside the cave entrance! But fear can also keep us stuck. It can keep us from moving forward into the kind of life that we imagine living, into fulfilling our soul's purpose at the depth we were born to do. Fear keeps us from letting go of the old way of thinking, the old way of doing things, even though the only way we are ever going to move ahead is by first doing just that.

I recently had to face a major fear. For over two years, I had been feeling the need to resign from a job that, at one time, would have been the very picture of my dream job. It had everything I could want except one thing: it wasn't aligned with my soul's purpose.

My favorite poet, David Whyte says this in one of his poems:

"If the soul wants to speak, it turns itself into fearsome shapes."

Facing our fears and moving through them anyway is a key step, maybe even a required step, in aligning with soul - and aligning with soul is, to my way of thinking, the key to lifelong happiness and personal fulfillment.

The world is in a phase of major change. Whether you consult scientists, theologians, philosophers, business leaders, or politicians, you will get the same interpretation: change is occurring at a deeper, profounder, and more rapid pace that ever before. It is no wonder some of us are feeling some fear. The question is, what's coming next and how should we deal with it?

A little over a year ago, I visited Chicago with my family and we had the chance to see the Evolving Planet exhibit at the Field Museum. I wandered from one room of the exhibit to the next observing how with each of the many mass species extinctions that have occurred on the Earth, the life forms that arose on the other side were always more complex and more beautiful. As I stepped into the last room of the exhibit, I was instantly reminded that the largest and most far reaching extinction of species in the history of the world is occurring right now. We are in it. Whereas in the previous rooms, I had looked at models and drawings of strange prehistoric creatures that no longer exist, in this room I was confronted with an array of photographs of the various forms of life on Earth today: from butterflies to seahorses to the faces of children of all colors. I couldn't help but cry.

The other side is more complex and more beautiful - the key seems to be being willing to let go of form.

What forms are calling you to be released? What do you need to do to step into your deeper purpose in life, into your greater beauty? The first step in the Vision Quest is Severance. We sever our ties to old forms so that we can face the dawn of the new day, the birth of new dreams. Lao Tzu said this:

"When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be."

What might you be? What might we all be?

I am writing this in early August while the summer is at its fullest heat. The plant world is full of growth - the weeds in my garden will attest to that! Before long though, the days will be getting shorter, the nights cooler and autumn will be around the corner. The growing world will slow down and the farmers will begin the final harvest. On the Native American Medicine Wheel, the fall is associated with the west. It is the "go within time" of personal reflection and self examination. It is the land of the soul. As you anticipate the coming coolness of the fall, I invite you to also reflect on what it may be time to let go of. What Severance awaits you in the coming fall?

We face the fear, and move forward anyway.

With Peace and Deep Mystery on Your Journey. Tom