Deep Openings

It seems like forever since I entered this Opening.

The Nature of Change

Change is change. It does not have just one shape. It comes as it wants to – lightly, brightly, darkly, deeply. Some changes are self-generated and others come upon us without our initial participation or intent. Openings often bring change – the kind that comes upon us and the kind we intend and identify when an Opening appears. Change is inherent in Openings.

In Openings, we are moving from one state of being or situation to another. Change involves transition and brings both opportunity and challenge. Some change we can resist; other change is thrust upon us. Whether surprised or welcoming as an Opening appears, we are invited to move. Staying still may seem like an option. It is not. Once the Opening appears, even if we say no to it, we are changed by its appearance alone.

Change itself is accelerating in our world today. We are redefining systems, models and ways of being. We are facing threats and promises for the future of our world. Our world is transforming. Within this change, we are living our individual lives. Openings are helping us grow and learn, bringing us to our best selves, if we embrace them. We have to face our individual Openings in a wider environment that is changing too.

Deep Openings

What are Deep Openings? They are Openings that take some time and strength to navigate. They bring us quite a distance from our ordinary life. They need our intention and focus in a big way. They are characterized by their duration, taking us deeply within, the presence of the unknown and the lack of a visible endpoint. This is their power. They help us create profound change.

What does it mean to go deeply? It often means rethinking our lives and listening to our hearts.  It requires deep examination and identification of what is working and what needs to be released. It means growth. It often involves developing the skills needed to navigate the unknown – finding our way on a path that is not clear. It means pulling away from everyday life into a place that is just for us.

Deep Openings can involve loss – accepting and acclimating to it. Deep Openings can involve profound, uninvited change sending us reeling. Deep Openings can be self-initiated; however no less intense because of this. Deep Openings can involve a radical self-acceptance that may brush against the norms of society. Deep Openings can stop us in our tracks and ask for a completely new direction.