An unexpected rain plummeted to the earth drumming upon already saturated land. Water pooling on roads splashed my windshield. This was not a storm of epic proportions; rather, it was a hard rain that wears you down.
Sometimes life is like that rain. We put one foot after the next — turning right, going left, standing still — living each moment to the fullest. When we are aware, we let go what is no longer part of our journey. Eyes turned to the possibilities dripping into our being, we are off on a new adventure. Or, maybe we decide to take a breather just to be.
That’s life — the ups and downs and all arounds. If we do not take care, we will find our self exhausted as we try one more time to drink in the drops of opportunity sure that this time it will feed our soul purpose. We do this over and over again because that is life. To stop trying is to stop living.
I had a friend tell me that everything that happens to us is a result of free will. It felt like she was saying that we have absolute control over life circumstances. Is free will what causes a misstep that has us sliding into a mud slick pit of despair? This seems a harshly judgmental way to look at life.
“Where is the compassion in this view?” I wondered. Don’t bad things happen that are out of our control? We get a disease, lose a job…the list is endless. We might not be able to cure the disease or find a job that is comparable to the one that we lost. Is either a result of free will? While I understand the role that free will has in our response to a situation, I am not sure how free will and the initiation of suffering are related.
I wonder about our role as a fellow human to help raise others out of their plight. Do we live a comfortable existence while ignoring the plight of others? Do we share platitudes and prayers? Or, do we find a way to give someone who is suffering a hand up? Isn’t our response to suffering a true act of free will?
For me, free will and compassion require that I find a way to give someone a hand up. The first two reactions do not journey through the labyrinth of suffering to the heart of compassion. The latter says, “I see you. I am with you. Let me hold the salve that you gently rub into your woundedness. Let me find ways to support and love you through these turbulent times.”
I have said it before, and I will say it again. We are #inthistogether. What does it say about us if we look someone in the eye and say, “You had free will. You created your situation. Not my problem.” This dearth of compassion and maelstrom of taking care of only our self diminish our humanity.
Compassion calls us — no Compassion demands that we help one another. We are called not to fix, but to console another through their suffering. We are required to lift up another so that they can catch the drops of opportunity and rise above the suffering into new life.
Maybe we are born with free will. Maybe the real challenge of free will is to step outside our comfortable lives and to help people in their time of suffering.
Vanessa F. Hurst, ms, is a Neural Synchrony™ facilitator, professional speaker, and author who weaves her inner wisdom into all she touches. Her books are A Constellation of Connections: Contemplative Relationships and Engaging Compassion Through Intent & Action. Vanessa assists clients in navigating their life paths with intuition. Contact Vanessa @ vanessa@intentandaction.com for keynotes, programs, and consultations.
Twitter: @fyrserpent / ©2018
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