Deep joy and deep pain in the density of life

"The possibility of deep joy requires a commitment to the density of life. This however means an openness to the possibility of deep pain"

~ Peter Rollins

Yes, the density of life is deep and wide, and contains the possibilities of both deep joy and deep pain. One cannot truly exist without the other, and so it is by embracing deep pain that we experience deep joy. It is one of the paradoxes of life, just like it is by embracing fear that we experience peace.

This quote reminds me of a devotional by Henri Nouwen I read recently about mourning and dancing - like deep pain and deep joy, both have their place and belong to each other.

"[There is] a time for mourning, a time for dancing" (Ecclesiastes 3:4). But mourning and dancing are never fully separated. Their "times" do not necessarily follow each other. In fact, their "times" may become one "time." Mourning may turn into dancing and dancing into mourning without showing a clear point where one ends and the other starts.

Often our grief allows us to choreograph our dance while our dance creates the space for our grief. ... Let's trust that the beauty of our lives becomes visible where mourning and dancing touch each other."

~ Henri Nouwen

It appears that we need the seasons of life for a complete growth and an experience of diversity and variety in life. The summers produce harvest and fruitfulness while the winters produce strength and steadfastness. It enables us to maintain a balanced perspective of life, such that in our moments of deep joy, we maintain our human empathy to relate to the sufferings of deep pain, and in our moments of deep pain, we retain our human capacity to relate to the experiences of deep joy.

A word of encouragement by Robert Rutherford

We are all faced with challenges. Loss.... Disease..... Death of loved ones....financial catastrophe.... Abuse..... Hurt..... Pain..... All of these things serve to strengthen us..... To make us better.....
To prepare us for the rest of the journey. In the middle of the trial... We must focus on the strength within... And, look to the finish line. We will make it. The challenge at hand is our friend. It will help us. Don't hate the pain.... Embrace it.

~ Robert Rutherford

Yes, we all face challenges in life, at different times and in varying degrees of hardship, and I also agree that these things serve to strengthen us - we will emerge not only better, but stronger and wiser. It reminds me of an athlete training for a marathon - each training exercise, each lap around the running track, serves to prepare us for the long journey ahead. As we progress further down the road, I believe we will be able to look back and marvel at how our past hurt and pain have bolstered us and given us the strength and endurance and wisdom that we have acquired which we would not have otherwise acquired without the initial hardship, and we will find ourselves coping or faring much better. Yes, embracing our pain and loss is the way to experience more freedom and peace in the long run.

Be aware of how you feel at all times

"Be aware of how you feel at all times. Your feelings will point out where the subconscious blockages of pain are."-Jason Hairston

 I suppose being aware of how we feel at all times is part of living and being in the present moment, practising mindfulness and meditation. We can watch our feelings pass by, just as we observe our thoughts come and go, like passing clouds in the sky, without necessarily engaging or acting upon our thoughts or feelings. Our feelings may or may not be validated, depending on how we perceive things, since I learnt that life is a matter of perception. I am not sure what the quote meant by subconscious blockages of pain - if they refer to guilt and regrets about the past, I would say it is only human to experience such feelings, since we all tend to do some self-reflection and wish we could have done something better (I tend to do self-evaluation from time to time, such as in the area of my work). 

 I believe even as we embark on this inner journey, it is also good to remember that our past - whether shortcomings or achievements - does not define us since our true identity is based on that which is unchanging and eternal - beloved, blameless, beautiful and perfect spiritual beings on a human journey - we are here to have a human experience. This is how we can reconcile to our highest self (the Father) whenever we come home and remember who we really are and awake to our innocence, being embraced in divine unconditional love. Being aware of our feelings at all times thus becomes a meditation practice in which we make peace with ourselves, and experience inner bliss. 

As the verse goes, "Having been made righteous by faith (awakening to our true identity of innocence and perfection and wholeness), we have peace with God (our highest self) through our Lord Jesus Christ (representative of our human race, our true identity), in whom we have access in this grace (divine favour) through faith." We can continue to expect wonderful things to happen to us because we are beloved and precious children of the universe.

"Behold, now is the day of salvation. Now is the time of favour." Every day is a good day because we are accepted in the Beloved.