The Great Dance of Life
By Annie Hisle
‘Losing’ is intrinsic to life … but so is ‘finding.’ As a bereavement counselor for over 40 years, I continually notice that ‘losing’ and ‘finding’ are dance partners in the great dance of life. They complement each other, and they need each other!
When we lose a job, a relationship, or a beloved person, we can eventually give thanks for what we had and imagine some new possibility. When we lose daylight and greenery in winter, we can imagine that the dead and dry seeds in the barren winter fields contain abundant green life. We can choose to accept and adjust to the great dance of life: breathing-out and breathing-in, letting-go and taking-in, losing and finding.
Poet Mary Oliver said it well at a workshop: “What a creation our Creator has loved into being —We shake with joy, we shake with grief. What a time they have, these two housed as they are in the same body.”
Ancient Chinese Zen wisdom (The Chinese Farmer) also reveals this balanced living:
There once was an old Chinese farmer who had worked his crops for many years. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit. “Such bad luck,” they said sympathetically. The farmer replied, “Good luck, bad luck, who knows.”
The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. “What good luck,” the neighbors exclaimed. “Good luck, bad luck, who knows,” replied the old farmer.
The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came and said, “What bad luck!” The farmer replied, “Good luck, bad luck, who knows.”
Several days after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son’s leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbors again said, “What good luck.” The farmer answered, “Good luck, bad luck, who knows.”
Can you think of times when a shift in perspective helped you to have a different experience of the great dance of life?
I’ll be leading a retreat at Bon Secours on April 26 where we will be “Looking at Loss.” Please feel welcome to join us!
https://bonsecoursrcc.org/event/looking-at-loss/