Pain is a leading cause of death; but not just physical death. Pain leads to the death of a relationship, a friendship, a hobby, a faith and, yes, a life. People are experiencing such significant pain and death can lead to more pain. When people come to seek out support, due to the loss of a loved one, they are in some of the most horrendous pain imaginable. This pain may cause them to feel that their very life has come to an end because they cannot fathom living without their beloved.
One thing people cannot easily see, when they are in the altered state of consciousness known as grief, is that the possible temporary nature of their grief will help lead them back to life. Like any meaningful and purposeful trance, the state of grief must be treated with great respect and be handled with care. What we do with our life trances is so incredibly important because, no matter how fun or painful they may be, we must remember they are for a purpose! In other words, stunting healthy grief with drugs, distraction or spiritual bypass is not honoring or respecting the value and direction of this trance. Part of the trance of grief is to experience the pain, the anger, the depression and the momentary glimmers of hope that glitter the mind with the possibility that the trance is coming to an end.
Pain is the great communicator, but we do not need to let it bring about the end. Pain is meant to guide us to a desired outcome. It is not meant to kill us. It is not meant to kill our relationships, our friendships, our hobbies or our faith. Pain is meant to lead us into something greater, something more beautiful something more abundant. If we can honor the process of every trance in our lives, we can resurrect from the feeling of death and be reborn into what the pain was pointing to all along: our future.
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