Thresholds

Lesley's Post

For Christmas we were in Sulphur, Oklahoma. We'd had an ice storm in Oklahoma City but luckily the roads were clear for our journey south when we left Christmas Eve day. The trees were covered with ice, glistening in the sun and we were amazed at the beauty of it all. And yet we reflected about how something that is so beautiful can also be so destructive, just like so much of life. There are those times of terrible suffering, freezing our lives, that can be slowly warmed by love, comfort and eventually, maybe, way in the future by the beauty of a tentative sense of meaning. Inside of us there are places where beauty and danger jostle for expression and where places of ice can be warmed, if we allow it, by opening our hearts and letting the sun in.

 

Halfway to our destination the ice disappeared, as if someone had drawn a line in the sand, or in this case the red earth. It was a threshold moment. This time of year is a threshold time. The New Birth at Christmas is followed by the New Year and we have to decide if we are going to stand in the doorway, in the liminal space, or pass through into the newness.  Sometimes the liminal space is a necessary time of incubation, pregnancy or hibernation when internal processes are working in unknown ways. But eventually, unless we are going to stay asleep for the rest of our lives or remain horribly uncomfortable with our unbirthed newness then we have to make a decision to walk through the door. And maybe this year we can make the newness more than losing weight or earning more money (not that those things necessarily are negative). So what would the more be for you? It doesn't have to be big or special from a worldly perspective, just maybe something important for your soul.

 

While we were in Sulphur we visited the Chickasaw Cultural Center, a beautifully developed, interesting, artistic and educational experience . At the beginning of our visit, prior to a demonstration of the traditional Stomp Dance, the Native American presenter spoke of how their gatherings are begun by "Opening the Door". As I understood it, this was a communal invitation and dance to offer a heartfelt welcome to family and friends and to leave our busyness and past mistakes and problems behind so that there is a new beginning. 

Maybe we can learn from that beautiful Chickasaw tradition and open the door. Can we make a daily promise to greet ourselves, family and friends with loving kindness and an open heart, to have moments when we release our busyness, to forgive our past mistakes and to face our challenges with courage when the time is right? Now that would be a New Year's Resolution!!