As many of you know, I've just moved from Gaithersburg, Maryland to Lehi, Utah. I took a picture of my kitchen area on October 28th, the day the movers dropped off my furniture and boxes. What a chaotic mess!
I've been working steadily on this mess with help from many people, and today, I took another picture of the kitchen area 19 days later. See below. Whew! What a difference a few days can make in creating order in that space. Today's Weekly Update shares my reflections on the creative process that brings order out of chaos in our lives and within the holographic universe. Have a great week. Enjoy!
What's Between Chaos and Order?
Reflections on time, intention, and action in ordinary life events
There is nothing that brings up more issues about chaos and order than moving. The past few weeks have been truly challenging. For example, I couldn't get my keys for the community mailbox until today, a month after moving into the house. I had to make five trips to the post office before I finally got my mailbox key.
When nothing is where it belongs and everything has to be reset or reinstalled, I have been challenged to be more of the following:
Patient
Thoughtful
Persistent
Tolerant
Faithful
Intentional
Active
Strong
Independent
Receptive
Connected
Grateful
When we face difficult circumstances, we have to be more creative and intentional in our actions. We have to grow in order to overcome unfamiliar tasks. For example, I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to assemble those two swivel bar stools together (in the picture above). After I completed them, I felt triumphant. It took a lot of work (intention + activity) to create an orderly space where I could function comfortably.
As I reflected on my recent experiences, I thought about how much work it takes to create the universe which is both spectacularly diverse in its beauty and amazingly precise in its construction. Though we cannot fathom the level of intelligence and force that created and continues to create the universe, our holographic, ordinary lives help us to understand the process that goes into creating order out of chaos.
In addition, while for me this move has been a physical shift, for many people, the challenges of mental illness are analogous to a move within the psyche—where once life was orderly and predictable, and then it's not. The struggle with mental illness can reduce life to chaos and disorganization, forcing us to start over and reconfigure our lives both inside and out.
It is through these trials that we come to know ourselves as separate from our circumstances, discovering who we truly are. I once wrote a poem about this idea in the poem called, "You Are."
Life discovers itself by overcoming challenges, using its inner strength, creativity, and power. When faced with chaos, the Creator within each of us rises to bring beauty and order out of the random, raw materials of life. From a different perspective, the moves we make through life events are meant to gift us the creative opportunities and growth we seek along our eternal journeys.
Have a great week!