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My best friend and I have two traditions once a year: 1) Shrimp platter gorging at Bubba Gump's 2) Travel out of the country. She and I decided on Iceland this year. The main reason we chose Iceland was to see the Northern Lights, which is something I've had on my bucket list for years. I fantasized about its rippling neon dance and the fantastic pictures I would have. I timed the trip around the aurora forecast and solar storms so I could see it, but despite everything it didn't show up. We were a little frustrated because the expensive night bus rides were long and cold. We sat waiting on the dirt in the freezing pitch black stillness. But I got to see something else amazing that I have never seen in my life: a serene sky filled with thousands and thousands of stars.
One night we shared a table at a restaurant with an Australian family and we struck up some conversation. I told the elderly lady about our failed aurora excursion and showed her the pictures on my camera. She looked at me and said "What a great metaphor for life. You go seeking one thing but even when it doesn't show when you expect, there is still beauty in the wait". Those words instantly stuck with me.
I haven't completely given up on my Aurora Borealis dream but I'm grateful I got to see all those beautiful stars and with my closest friend. Sometimes as hard as we try to control our lives and get anxious when things don't quite go as planned, we can only do what we can control and then surrender the outcome to the universe. I did everything I could control like planning the trip timing and choosing the best forecast days, but ultimately the aurora's appearance was not in my control. In our lives we pursue what we want, whether it be a job, relationship, or idea. We chase it and we find out it works out great and whoo! It's great! Or sometimes it's a failure and we're left marinating in self-doubt and kicking ourselves. Maybe the aurora would've shown if I chose the first solar storm instead of the second, that guy I really liked chose someone else over me because I wanted to go too slow, I could've gotten the interview if I had done A B and C. But the these successful/failed events are the ticks on our heart's spinning compass leading us where to go next to find our 'treasure' (hey Norway, maybe you have my lights?). That treasure can be your purpose in life, your soulmate, or a gift to someone else.
What's meant to be yours, will be yours. Always. Sometimes it comes soon. Sometimes it shows itself but comes around much later because when it finally arrives, it will be perfect because it had time to "cook". And sometimes it never comes because something better is on the way (even though it might be hard to believe amidst tough circumstances). Like the woman told me, "there is beauty in the wait". Similar to how I fantasized of finally seeing the lights and getting some sweet pictures, I do dream of holding hands with an eccentric gentleman who loves life and obtaining that career I long for. But in the meanwhile there is nothing wrong with being single because there is beauty in discovering myself and the world while my future partner does the same. There is nothing wrong with being out of a full time job either because there is beauty in experiencing and learning new things on the freelance scene. I might find my destined man or career tomorrow or maybe it'll be years-- I can't control the ultimate outcome of my life's events beyond what I give 100%. Whatever it is we're seeking in life, we must always find the beauty in our waits because a gift will show itself. |
| | Posted 10/8/2012 11:46 AM - 148 Views
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