Just as there is not a way to force a plant to grow, there is not a way to force the inner life force to appear and perform according to the demands of our mind. What there is, is to purify, toil, honor, humble one’s self. This is done bit by bit; recognizing the many obvious, and sometimes very subtle, ways we demand that life be the way we want it to be. As if we have any say in how life goes.
It is a fierce journey, this life, and not for the weak of soul. We can plant many a seed to no avail. A storm can come out of nowhere and wipe out all that we have sown. Droughts and floods do happen. Heat and cold are not in our control, except in the false environments of our homes. The homes of the “lucky” few, that is.
To be willing to come face-to-face with all that is possible, both for and against life, takes something. As already mentioned, humility is first and foremost. Courage and integrity, the proper use of our free will, qualities that are deeply intertwined, are vital.
Life does not go our way, it goes the way that it does. We can, if we are humble and courageous, if we are exquisitely self-responsible, if we can let go our pride, decide through our free-will what response is being asked of us. Which response is with life rather than against?
Sometimes we are asked to trust life in the face of fear. Perhaps there is a letting go, perhaps a fighting for, perhaps a being with, just as life is in the present.
There is no map, no perfect set response, no recipe.
Even in our deepest prayer and meditation, life may show up or not. Just as our best seeds in the richest soil may not produce. This is where faith comes in. Faith is easy when we get our way, when life seems to give us just what we want.
Our work is to continue to plant, over and over, deep into our innermost being, a prayer to be aligned with life. Amen.