I’ve had one of those weeks. You know the one. Where you begin to question the very foundations of your existence and the meaning of your future. It wasn’t a question of “to be or not to be”; it was a struggle to grieve the loss of an ideal that I had trusted; it was a funeral of an idea.
Grief, whether losing a loved one or of an idea, is painful. Many of us want to shove it aside, “get over it,” distract ourselves from it. In the midst of my discomfort, I remembered the words of Rabbi Sacks in his conversation with Krista Tippett. He talked of the Jacob from the Old Testament who wrestled with God and would not let go until God had blessed him. Rabbi Sacks applied the same logic to suffering. He said, “When something bad happens, I will not let go of that bad thing until I have discovered the blessing that lies within it.” So that is my approach right now, in the midst of grieving—to find the positive, the blessing, the good, the nugget of truth within the current situation, so that I can celebrate and grow because of the situation, instead of retreat in pain and frustration.
Where can you see blessing in past painful situations?
What can you celebrate in yourself or others within your current pain?