Hon Sha Za Sho Nen (a Reiki greeting meaning, the Divine within me recognizes the Divine within you)….

When we rest, when we make space, when we let go….it doesn’t always feel blissful. Nirvana does not automatically follow. Meditation isn’t always comfortable or joyous or enlightening. Slowing down, allowing ourselves to be more present, opens us to the light, our light, and sometimes that light illuminates things we are holding that we need to be aware of, so we can make a choice about what to do with them. Sometimes the light illuminates the dust bunnies, those remnants of energy that just need to be released.

This process is not necessarily comfortable. When something is uncomfortable, we tend to shy away from it, judge it, say to ourselves: well, if it doesn’t feel good, it’s not what I want to go through. But transition is uncomfortable. And I have found it’s OK to be uncomfortable. We can get through it. It’s OK if something we are trying on for size feels awkward at first, if we feel uneasy.

When we first practice new behavior, that’s just what it is, new and unpracticed. It takes time for us to get good at something, whether it’s playing the piano, writing, teaching, using new styles of communication or taking loving care of ourselves. It can be somewhat painful, and we might be tempted to give it up because it’s just too much trouble to do something new, healthier, different. But it’s just part of the process.

So when we feel uncomfortable as we try on new, more loving behavior, or when we practice taking better care of ourselves, be kind. Breathe. Be willing to trust out the process (I like this better than thinking of being patient). Be willing to sit with the edginess that might be going on….it will pass. Embrace all of it. Life includes all of everything! We can practice tolerance for the distress we feel as we experience the newness of giving ourselves space or love or kindness.

It’s OK if we are temporarily uncomfortable, as we get used to and apply the Love we truly are. That same Love surrounds and supports us, holds us and is completely at ease waiting for us to catch up to the Truth of Love.