Obstacles are surely going to greet you through the course of your life. Whether it is a minor derail from the path you are on or a huge setback – the ability to persevere with patience and gratitude is a gift and a skill that one can acquire through great reflection and meditation.
In this meditation, you will be guided to observe the current obstacles you face in your life. As you begin to mentally examine each challenge or obstacle that is in your way, a deeper sense of purpose and patience will support you along this journey.
Begin in a comfortable position whether you take this seated or lying down the choice is yours. Once you find comfort in your body begin to sense into all areas that prominently fixate your awareness. Do you feel tension in your neck, hips, back, or shoulders? Perhaps your jaw? As you sense into these areas take a deep cleansing breath in through your nose – fill to the very tip top of this breath. Once you can’t take in any more air, hold at the top for 5. 4. 3. 2. And 1. Release the breath naturally out of your mouth creating a sighing sound.
Breathe again. Finding that inhale, filling all the way to the top, sipping in a touch more air. Holding for as long as you feel comfortable and then exhaling…
Give yourself these next few moments of silence to find this breath pattern.
Release the breath and allow yourself to breathe naturally.
Now imagine you are in a desert walking along a windy path that leads to an oasis. The dessert is dry and the sun is beating down on you. It’s a strong heat that radiates through your body and while some may find heat comfortable and warming, this is beyond that kind of heat. It makes you feel uncomfortable. All you want to do is to find a quick way to the oasis that is up ahead. You can see it in the distance and have been told that is where a beautiful pool awaits on the other side of the sand dune filled with palm trees on all sides. Water. Your thirst is your main focus, but for now, you try to continue along this path, focusing step by step on getting to your destination. As you are walking you see a giant boulder in your path – this is your first obstacle – the obstacle of expectations, you become frustrated as this giant boulder is blocking your way through the desert, you could go around it but then it will take you off course to the surest way to get to your water source.
Bring to mind what this boulder represents to you – what expectations do you have for yourself, for your life, for your relationships? By thinking of the word expectations what thoughts come to the forefront of your mind?
Give yourself time to think. Take a deep breath. Pause. And allow the feelings to come up even if they cause discomfort. Perhaps, these expectations bring about a positive feeling – but think of a time when an expectation fell through, didn’t go according to plan, and you felt disappointed by the reaction you had or by the end result.
Take another deep breath. Find acceptance with whatever comes up. When we set expectations for something to turn out a certain way and then it goes another way the end result may often lead to disappointment. To transform this experience, this obstacle of your expectations into something of beauty one must find it inside oneself to see this result as a gift. Although you may not see in the moment that the derailment occurs, it may be this course correction that will lead you to something greater.
You find yourself staring at this boulder and see this as an invitation to find another way to the oasis. You go around it, but instead of traveling to the way the boulder was blocking you find a path off course. You travel down it for several minutes when you realize it is leading you somewhere else… you continue to walk, although you are no longer on a path, but instead treading through dunes. A little while longer and then you are in awe. Suddenly you see the vast scape of ocean in the distance. You are at one of the world’s oldest deserts, the Namib Desert which meets the Atlantic Ocean in northern Namibia. Namib translates to “vast place”, which is a very suitable description for the miles of beach and dunes this collision stretches along. A smile begins to lift from the corners of your mouth. If you had gone on that path, you would have ended up at a resort and sure there would have been a pool with palm trees – but this is so much better.
You stare in amazement at the great ocean in front of you. You jump into the water and feel alive with joy as the heat washes away. Suddenly you realize you are in the water, but you are still without drinking water.
Another dilemma. However, you have perseverance at your side. You are determined to find water to drink. You get out of the ocean and gaze out at the waters for a moment as you feel a calmness instilled inside of you. You turn back to go on your path but have suddenly forgotten which way you came from. The dunes all look the same from this long stretch and you are lost for words on where you should go. You grapple for survival as you find positivity within you. You are determined to find a way even when you are unsure. You start walking through the dunes when in the faint distance you hear a child laughing, you turn around and see on the stretches of this beach a family on vacation. They have umbrellas and a picnic. You run frantically with leaps of excitement. You introduce yourself and explain how you have been lost in this desert. The family is gracious and offers you water and a ride back to the resort.
While this story is imaginative along the way there are feelings that are present. What obstacles do you currently face in your life? How do you handle challenges? What do you do when life doesn’t meet your expectations or a situation doesn’t turn out the way you had hoped or dreamed of? Do you place too many demands on yourself? Are you too hard on yourself? Do you go with the flow?
Overcoming challenges is a skill and with continued meditation, you will find a sense of resilience that builds up within you. You will learn to breathe through discomfort and uncertainty and find ways to bring yourself back to peace. Through reflection exercises such as this, you can start to examine your life in a different way. Sometimes there are boulders right in front of us, but we find it difficult to examine them. Give yourself as much time, as much space, silence, and stillness to understand why this expectation, this challenge, this obstacle makes you feel a certain way, and then find the courage to find a solution or find another path. Life may get messy, but it’s how you handle it that will make it beautiful.