Lessons from the Water

I missed my daily meditation stop on the bridge over the river today because I’m on my way to Baltimore. As I write I am sitting in seat 11A looking out the window at meandering rivers someplace in the Rock Mountains. This change in perspective is interesting. Usually I ponder the river from a few feet above it. Watching how pliable the water is—how it makes its way around obstacles and carries with it the fallen leaves. There is always a lesson to learn from the river, and even thousands of feet above it, watching the water wander for miles and miles it is teaching me.

No river makes a straight line. They wander sometimes making great arcs that end up returning almost to the place they began except a little farther on toward the destination. It makes me wonder what causes the “detour.” Is the path blocked or was the way around just easier? In some places it is interesting to see how the battle between the land and the water is won by the soft, pliable water. The water may be soft but it is persistent and erodes its way deep into some the rock and soil to make a path.

It reminds me of the most important factor about Living in Truth. After acknowledging Truth, the next thing we do is decide whether we need to fix it or live with it. The river does that. Sometimes it lives with the problem by etching a large circle around the problem and then returning to where it can move on. It accepts the problem and makes the necessary adjustments to live with them. Other times it keeps right on going, eroding away a path. It fixes the problem.

One of the most important things to learn from this perspective is that once you have decided to live with a problem, the truth is you need to keep moving forward. You can’t turn back. Accept the decision and keep on moving without second thoughts. And if you have decided to fix the problem, realize it may be difficult and take some time but little efforts over time make big changes. So be patient.