Migratory birds…

For action-oriented people taking a step back, being patient, waiting for things to naturally happen or evolve is so very tough! Surrender feels strange.

‘Waiting isn’t mere empty hoping. It has an inner certainty of reaching a goal’.  

Wait is somehow associated with inaction, lack of courage or failure to deliver. Quotes on the net ‘seize the day’, ‘make something happen today’! We love to make ‘to-do lists’.

Now, realise patience is a powerful tool in life. Our mind is very uncomfortable with waiting, ‘do something! anything is better than nothing!’ An ego-driven mind hates uncertainty. Prefers to make silly mistakes rather than being in a state of ‘not knowing’ while the right path or direction unfolds. 

A ‘liminal space’ is at the threshold between possibilities. A place of pure potential, we could go any direction. No neon lights or road signs saying ‘walk this way please!’. We tend to rush through decisions as quickly as possible. Instead if we slow down, the landscape gradually becomes clearer. We begin to observe intently, use all our senses.

Ego wants a brightly lit super-highway to the future, but real life is more like a maze. We take a few steps in one direction and then face a major turning point. Our way forward may require an entirely different authentic set of skills, style or approach.

Things happen at a subconscious level. Oddly, there’s a sense of inevitability, as if it was meant to be. Patience and honesty brings a deep sense of inner knowing. Doesn’t mean things will turn out exactly how we want or we don’t feel fear.

But, there’s an intuitive sense of ‘yes, this is it or now’s the time’, like migratory birds. They don’t debate whether to go, consult maps, clocks or calendars. They just go when time is right, just know it.

Our inner sensitivity lets us simply know what to do and how when it’s time. But, to do what’s needed we have to unhook a little from our minds. Thinking is useful up to a point but we usually take it far beyond points of usefulness! 

Go over and over stuff trying to predict future. Talk endlessly with others about what we should do, hoping they have accurate answers.

A better way is to take stock of what we truly feel or know (more importantly, what we don’t know) and wait for natural illuminations. Wait actively rather than passively, keeping our inner senses tuned to urges or intuitions. Expect an answer will come. Wait with a positive ‘inner certainty of reaching the goal’.

This isn’t procrastination when we want to try something new but afraid. If our intuition points a certain direction, it’s a significant voice. Trust and believe in self.

Whenever I made decisions solely based on other’s expectations, fears, supposedly sensible thoughts over natural instincts, I lost.

Learnt not to rush through life. Linger in liminal spaces, wait for clarity. Trust my gut feel. Have faith the right course will unfold at a perfect time and place.

When the time comes – just do it as simply and naturally as migratory birds take flight!