When The Walls Are Closing In

I’m looking for Openings but rather than Openings I am feeling the walls closing in on me. What can I do?

Narrow Openings

Sometimes, Openings are less than welcoming. Rather, they challenge us by making themselves difficult to find or to walk through. In doing so, they build our strength and courage before we even enter them. Would that all Openings be expansive and welcoming. But that is not life – life is up and down, dark and light.

Some Openings ask us to begin a hero’s journey in order to find them. We encounter the unknown but do not look back. An example of this type of Opening could be that a person knows they want something new in their life but aren’t sure what. It could seem that there are no Openings available. But there are calls to adventure. Perhaps someone provides an opportunity to do something different or something new enters their life. That’s the Opening available at that point. It is not complete, but it starts a journey.

Another example of a narrow Opening could be one where very specific actions or knowledge is required to see the Opening and to get through it. Perhaps someone sees an opportunity but to avail themselves of it they may have to get through a lot of bureaucratic red tape or meet exacting requirements that they are not yet prepared for.

Collapsing Openings

This type of Opening involves either the Opening itself collapsing or the road to it collapsing and in chaos. It challenges us to even see it amidst what’s happening, much less to evaluate or enter it. The collapse may be caused by external forces or may be inherent to the Opening itself. Either way, getting to it takes work and courage.

An example of such an Opening lies in our present conditions. The chaos and change caused by the pandemic has put us in an unfamiliar and challenging environment. If we were looking for a change in our life, we may not be able to use the skills and tools we developed before the pandemic. To proceed, we must develop new skills and tools that work in the new world we are in.

Sometimes, there is danger in collapsing Openings. We must discern the cause of their possible collapse. It may be that the opening is truly collapsing – it is no longer viable or promising for us.

What To Do

What can we do but learn and grow, leading us to mastering our ability to recognize Openings and discern which ones are right for us. When we encounter narrow or collapsing Openings, we deal with them. We hone our skills and proceed with our journeys. We learn how to recognize the ones that are right for us.

Growth is called for in dealing with these kinds of Openings. There are many ways to grow intentionally. We can seek mentors, read about others’ experiences with challenge, we can experiment with our responses to these kinds of Openings and see what works. Openings are about our movement and proceeding with our journeys with whatever we need to be able to do so.

Increasingly, our world is moving towards constructive collaboration. Support and mastermind groups can help us in these times through sharing insights and ideas and putting multiple minds on a problem. In these collaborations there must be trust, confidentiality, and respect for every member. They are achievable and may be powerful forces, as we navigate a new world.