Singing to the sea
I went sailing recently for the first time and there was a Nor’easter. AND as the boat pitched and rolled over waves as large as itself, I found myself on the second morning, singing. While my body reeled with cold, sleeplessness and nausea from the continual sloshing of the sea, I somewhat instinctively began to sing and despite my physical suffering was reconnected to the majesty of the sea.
I share this story because yesterday I found myself in an incredibly similar situation on dry land. Again the same instinctual drive to sing came over me. I realized, as I rolled down the windows, turned up the stereo and began to belt out The Prince of Darkness by the Indigo Girls, that while I was not on the high seas, for all intents and purposes my boat was pitching.
We can be pitched around well enough in life without ever stepping foot on a sail boat. Life is hard. It is! And we will be prone to sea sickness, feeling overwhelmed, scared, frustrated, and more. But like being on a sail boat far from land, we don’t have the option of exiting the ride.
So what can we do?
Well, I chose to sing.
I wonder what you choose when the Nor’easter starts to blow and you feel like you are only barely keeping it together. Is there something you’ve found that helps you to smile in the midst of it, that helps you to hold on, that helps you to reconnect to the majesty?
I have to tell you reconnecting to the majesty won’t necessarily take away the sea sickness. It didn’t make me warmer or less nauseous, but it did make me smile, and it made me grateful, and well… eventually we made it to land.
When we reconnect to the majesty, we remember what is the most real. We can choose to give our attention to the difficulties, the fears, the frustrations, or we can turn our attention back to what is the most real, the peace that is always present in the midst of every moment, the glory of God.
I have a friend who goes to the movies to feel human again, she’ll go to the theater and see three films in one afternoon! Maybe you go to the gym, bake banana bread, or do somersaults. Whatever the practice or habit or hobby is for you don’t discount its power. Don’t think, oh, that’s silly, or there’s no time, or people are watching.
Life is hard. When you need to sing, sing!
April 17 2008 06:26 pm | Spiritual Struggle
