become a member Cost as low as $4/month and enjoy unlimited reading of the TSLL blog.
“Every salmon knows what man has forgotten.” -Robert Clarke
The news you dread hearing. You don’t want to check the account balance. Skills you think are hard to learn. The person you don’t want to see or talk to, but need to. That’s the truth you don’t want to accept.
Whatever you are afraid to face, to see, to be fully aware of its truth, when we choose to do so, the stories that have been playing out in our minds have reached the end of their road. Helpless narratives are no longer seen as valid in any way, shape or form. Why? Because we bravely choose to put ourselves in the real-time moment and see for ourselves. No more guesswork, no more surprises, no more sugarcoating, no more fabrication, no more denial. Truth has been faced, and in doing so we have freed ourselves.
In Mark Nepo The Book of AwakeningHe uses the analogy of salmon swimming upstream after roaming and feeding in the ocean during a spring and early summer. In particular, he writes of their ability to leap out of the water, propel themselves further upstream, even jumping from six-foot-high waterfalls to persevere in the river at their home. He writes, “Salmon gives us a way to face truth without shutting it down. They show us how leaning into our experience, even if we don’t like the hurt, moves us forward.”
Just how do salmon, these amazing creatures of the sea and streams, do it? Without legs, arms, or even wings, they jump out of the water, and yes, jump, jump! upriver It sounds impossible on paper, but when we bring physics into the equation, it’s absolutely possible. And because it’s in their nature, part of their necessary journey to be consistent with who they are, they know how to do it and must do it for generation after generation to prosper. Working with the current, they turn their body, especially their lower side, into the current and allow it to strike them – in other words, directly facing it, so that it carries them out and further upstream. Physics is simple when we understand what they are doing. The point is, the salmon has to do something. In order to move towards their desired destination they have to deal with what most would consider avoidable.
How does it apply to humans? If we choose to grow, to heal, to evolve, we must face situations that seem frightening, intimidating, or impossible to overcome. We have to do this because the only way to change our current reality (in the case of salmon, living in the ocean and dying without reproduction) is to do something differently. And, let’s be honest with ourselves, if it were easy, we’d already be doing it. Take for example someone who wants to visit a certain country that can only be reached by air travel. If they are afraid of flying, then their dreams literally sit on the other side of an obstacle that they fear. This does not mean that the first flight will be easy to overcome their fear, or that anxiety will be absent until the wheels safely touch the ground in their desired place, but it does mean that the only way to experience the change we seek is to face what we fear.
It goes without saying that the whole road of change and evolution will be difficult. It won’t. But once we realize that the significant currents that are pushing against us, may actually be there to help us progress, our way forward becomes clear. Now, we need to choose to face it. Each time we do, our fear of facing the need for attention diminishes, our confidence gradually strengthens, and we see our lives evolve toward the realization of our purpose, hopes, and dreams.
Let me leave you with this fact: this has happened often in my own life journey, starting as a young girl who had to muster up the courage to do something I feared was impossible, but with the encouragement of my parents established a reputation for being kind, honest and faithful and now in my adulthood living a life that continues to amaze me if only I could choose to do it all. The thing I feared the most was in my mind, not in reality.
Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t always easy, but it was 99.9% of the time less terrifying and less scary than my lizard mind had me believe every time I imagined I would have to face my fear. This imaginary moment of terror created by the lizard mind is an untrained mind’s way of thinking it is keeping us safe. It actually holds us back. When we understand why it’s doing it, we can acknowledge its fear and demonstrate through the actions of facing our fear that it’s holding us back astray, even if well-intentioned.
So today, what obstacle, current, thing you fear that you cannot overcome, that you cannot jump over and over and to the other side? Be as clear and concrete as you can be with yourself, be frank, honest about what you think you can’t do and what’s standing in your way of growing, healing or evolving into the life you envision. Then, pluck up the courage and face it. Not only will you survive it, but you’ll learn as much about the wild imagination that can work against us as it can work for us. Get clear on what situations it’s helpful to trust your imagination, and you’ll begin to free yourself.
Have a wonderful week, and thank you for inspiring me to start living my life fully and wholeheartedly.
~ Explore TSLL Contentment Masterclass: View detailed syllabus, read student reviews, watch trailers and discover who this course is designed for.
Similar posts you might enjoy
