The Door Swings Both Ways

Yesterday, I was speaking with a friend of mine about the shifting energies that we have all been feeling in our world, whether or not we name or understand them. I wondered how I could stay more present and not keep "falling back to sleep" and going unconscious. 

My friend gave me this great analogy from a new restaurant that she's been going to frequently. The restaurant's bathroom stall has a door that opens in rather than out. At first she would automatically open the door out and it would bang against the radiator. Each time she visited that restroom, the number of times that she remembered to pull the door toward her increased. She still forgets and hits the radiator, but she's confident that eventually she will have reconditioned herself to remember how this door opens.

Old and the new paradigms coexist in our lives. Many of us are feeling frustrated that the ways that we are used to relating to our world, aren't working the way they have in the past. The things that we relied on to make us feel "secure (stable employment, home ownership, a safe environment) now feel like shifting sand beneath our feet. 

We face daily decisions to stay in the old paradigm, where we were so comfortable, or to open ourselves to new possibilities. We will sometimes forget and open the door out and hit the radiator, but the next time could be a time when we remember. The important thing is to gently love ourselves as we learn new ways of being. 

Give yourself a pat on the back or a hug every time you remember which way the door opens, and let the rest go. Laughing helps!