Your experience of life is like a river flowing through you. The important thing to remember is that whatever is flowing through you now will pass. The entirety of the river - the good, bad, and ugly - is always temporary.
The very nature of a river is to flow continuously, without ever stopping. You happen to have the beautiful river of life flowing through you at all times. The question is not what will the river bring you, but rather, how can you live in harmony with the river, no matter what it brings?
We need to move past the idea that our rivers must bring what we want, and not bring what we don't want. That should be an antiquated idea of how to live our lives. We're wiser than that.
The real quest should be to figure out how to align our state of being with the state of nature around us, and within us, such that there's no discord. This would be true integrity, where we're cultivating a wise, authentic relationship with whatever the river of life has in store for us in this moment.
What more can we ask for? Who are we to tell the river what and what not to wash down to us? What makes us think we can really control that? Wouldn't it be better to figure out how to make do with whatever the river brings?
Instead of trying to push rough waters away when they arise, learn to let the river of life cleanse you. Let the water wash up onto your shore, knowing that it will soon flow back down stream. Whenever the water hits something that causes a disturbance inside, let the natural flow of the river help remove the thorn you're carrying.
Surrender to the river of life within, and begin to experience true freedom.
Live with substance!
Gabe Orlowitz
