That elusive moment when entities in a reaction convert, the
big transformation that may make us thinking that we are neither here nor
there. Perhaps it’s that pinnacle moment that allows us to savor, take stock,
and enjoy the view. Transitions are never easy and the only thing that helps us
through it is perspective.
I used to think life is linear, you are born, you grow up,
have a family, have a career, grow old, and life ends. On our memorials or
tombstones we have our birth date to death date with a straight line between
them. The dash in the middle is life, but now I know that it’s in no way
straight. In fact, if it is linear for anyone, then it’s a life unlived.
The dash of life is fleeting as days turn into weeks into
months, years, decades and even a century. Time takes over and adds twists,
bends, climbs and descents with many alterations at each turn and major transfiguration
at some points. Time is fleeting only when we keep moving with momentum to
guide us, force to nudge us, inertia to stabilize us and without these, the
lull stops all clocks and time drags through a sluggish path.
When we climb we may get sweaty or wrestle our way up, but
we lean forward with each step to find that balance. The descent may be fast and
furious for which we lean back to stay mindful. A soft bend or sudden turn puts
us off balance and we lean sideways to center our core. Some call this laws of
physics with force and inertia jerking us around, I call it our mettle, our
ability to stay grounded by centering and focusing on our core. The push and
pull, the tug up or down continues throughout the dash of life and we lean in
or out, up or down, front or back to find our poise.
Transitions are hard, they are testy and if you transgress,
lose the inertia during the sharp bends then the fall is hard and steep and even
shattering. Awareness allows a silkier
ride, recognizing that change is growth, bends are new perspective, climbs are
an opportunity to reach a peak, to savor a pinnacle moment.
Life’s undesirable or enigmatic events are not crisis, but
transitions, transformations, opportunities for metamorphosis that allows the
dash of our years in human form to have meaning and create a legacy.
