I posted this message some time ago...but it still remains relevant...enjoy! L
Gain Disguised As Loss
Art is the act of structuring time. "Look at it this way," a piece of art says. "Here's how I see it." As the novelist Eve Babitz remarks, "It's all in the frame." This is particularly true when what we are dealing with is an artistic loss.
Every loss must always be viewed as a potential gain; it's all in the framing.
Every end is a beginning. We know that. But we tend to forget it as we move through grief. Struck by a loss, we focus, understandably, on what we leave behind, such as a lost dream of a work's successful fruition and its buoyant reception.
We need to focus on what lies ahead. This can be tricky. We may not know what lies ahead. And, if the present hurts this badly, we tend to view the future as impending pain.
"Gain disguised as loss" is a potent tool. To acquire it, simply and brutally ask yourself: "How can this loss serve me? Where does it point my work?" The answers will surprise and liberate you.
The trick is to metabolize pain as energy. The key to doing that is to know, to trust, and to act as if a silver lining exists if you are only willing to look at something differently or to walk through a different door, one that you may have balked at.
The film director John Cassavetes once said, "In order to catch the ball, you have to want to catch the ball." This can be taken to mean, "Stop complaining about the lousy curves you get thrown and stretch, reach for what you really want."
By Julia Cameron
I have tried to follow this advice.
Ask yourself "How?" instead of "Why me?" My mother had a number of terminal illnesses throughout my entire childhood and I took on more responsibility at home. I tried to keep myself focused on what lay ahead and do the things I was most passionate about in my life. So, while studying hard for school, I also became very active with music, art, and dance.
My mother passed away when I was 19 and I had just left Guam then to live in San Diego, California. I struggled afterwards for a year and a half with guilt, blaming myself for not being present when she died.
That experience taught me one of my biggest and greatest lessons. That existing in a state of guilt and depression would only keep me from moving on. I wanted to honor my mother and realized I could only do that by releasing any fear and anxiety about my future. I learned that whenever I was willing to ask "What's next?" I moved ahead.
After that period, I made the commitment to finish my education at the University of Hawaii and fulfill my passions in music, dance and theatre. I eventually moved to Virginia, got into network engineering, and while studying tai chi I met my first Reiki teacher.
The transitions to these new experiences were sometimes scary and painful. But, more often than not, when I started asking the right questions and forming new visions for myself, the people and resources I needed to get to a new place would show up.
I also learned that when I have taken "No" or "It can't be done" for a final answer I have stalled and gotten stuck. These experiences taught me that the key to resiliency is self-empowerment and choice.
Currently listening to:
Nick of Time
By Bonnie Raitt
Release date: 1990-10-25
Gain Disguised As Loss
Art is the act of structuring time. "Look at it this way," a piece of art says. "Here's how I see it." As the novelist Eve Babitz remarks, "It's all in the frame." This is particularly true when what we are dealing with is an artistic loss.
Every loss must always be viewed as a potential gain; it's all in the framing.
Every end is a beginning. We know that. But we tend to forget it as we move through grief. Struck by a loss, we focus, understandably, on what we leave behind, such as a lost dream of a work's successful fruition and its buoyant reception.
We need to focus on what lies ahead. This can be tricky. We may not know what lies ahead. And, if the present hurts this badly, we tend to view the future as impending pain.
"Gain disguised as loss" is a potent tool. To acquire it, simply and brutally ask yourself: "How can this loss serve me? Where does it point my work?" The answers will surprise and liberate you.
The trick is to metabolize pain as energy. The key to doing that is to know, to trust, and to act as if a silver lining exists if you are only willing to look at something differently or to walk through a different door, one that you may have balked at.
The film director John Cassavetes once said, "In order to catch the ball, you have to want to catch the ball." This can be taken to mean, "Stop complaining about the lousy curves you get thrown and stretch, reach for what you really want."
By Julia Cameron
I have tried to follow this advice.
Ask yourself "How?" instead of "Why me?" My mother had a number of terminal illnesses throughout my entire childhood and I took on more responsibility at home. I tried to keep myself focused on what lay ahead and do the things I was most passionate about in my life. So, while studying hard for school, I also became very active with music, art, and dance.
My mother passed away when I was 19 and I had just left Guam then to live in San Diego, California. I struggled afterwards for a year and a half with guilt, blaming myself for not being present when she died.
That experience taught me one of my biggest and greatest lessons. That existing in a state of guilt and depression would only keep me from moving on. I wanted to honor my mother and realized I could only do that by releasing any fear and anxiety about my future. I learned that whenever I was willing to ask "What's next?" I moved ahead.
After that period, I made the commitment to finish my education at the University of Hawaii and fulfill my passions in music, dance and theatre. I eventually moved to Virginia, got into network engineering, and while studying tai chi I met my first Reiki teacher.
The transitions to these new experiences were sometimes scary and painful. But, more often than not, when I started asking the right questions and forming new visions for myself, the people and resources I needed to get to a new place would show up.
I also learned that when I have taken "No" or "It can't be done" for a final answer I have stalled and gotten stuck. These experiences taught me that the key to resiliency is self-empowerment and choice.
Currently listening to:
Nick of Time
By Bonnie Raitt
Release date: 1990-10-25
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