By Karen Van Allen
Nature is a beautiful teacher. Each fall, the leaves on the trees turn incredible shades of orange, red, gold, and brown before making their descent to the ground. The tree is letting go of what is no longer needed. Notice that the leaves fall easily and effortlessly, almost as if they were floating. Nobody has to tell them that it is time for them to drop off the branch or shake them free. The trees don’t resist this process and know that new life will appear in the spring. Our job is to gather the leaves and dispose of them. We don’t cry that they are gone and know that this is a natural process of growth.
There has to be a relinquishing of what is no longer valuable or a change in the external circumstance before new growth can appear. The challenge for humans is the uncertainty. We can’t see what’s next and tend to hang on (ok, cling) to what is familiar. The transition time between letting go and what is next can often be filled with anxiety.
The way to walk through this period of uncertainty is to trust that all is in perfect and divine order. The following quotation from A Course in Miracles (W-pI.47.1) reminds me that there is a Higher Power in the Universe that wants only good for all of us.
“If you are trusting in your own strength, you have every reason to be apprehensive, anxious and fearful. What can you predict or control? What is there in you that can be counted on? What would give you the ability to be aware of all the facets of any problem, and to resolve them in such a way that only good can come of it? What is there in you that gives you the recognition of the right solution, and the guarantee that it will be accomplished?”
The next time I think that I have to figure out what is next or plan for the future, I’m going to remember the trees and wait in quiet expectancy for the new growth to appear.
A Course in Miracles study group meets via Zoom on Monday nights from 6:30-8:00 pm. New and continuing students welcome. Please respond to this post if you would like the meeting link.
That was wonderful Karen. Thank you! 🙂
I really enjoyed this Karen. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you, really very nice and feeling calmer. Guess through this epidemic, leaves are still falling but I know that it will stop and nothing but good will continue in our lives.