HIGH HEELS AND SNOW

This bestselling author has sold over 80 million books and just signed a 3 year contract with Simon and Shuster…She will be 88 years old when that contract ends…but if past history is any indication, she will probably still be on an upward spiral. She received a college degree at age 50, wrote numerous short stories, 30 best sellers, a historical book as well as a memoir… all after she was widowed at 36 raising 5 children.

When does an inspiration begin?  When do you cultivate it?  When do you stop working on new ideas?

I have never read a book by her, but the latest book cover by Mary Higgins Clark captured my eye as it showcased a red high heel in the snow. Those of you who know me know that I love high heels, but hate snow…loving the high heels as an excuse to feel tall, elegant and capable…hating the snow for the cold, bundling up and treachery of maneuvering.

Two opposing forces…Opposites I had learned about as “Yin” and “Yang” in junior high school…taught in a narrow version as feminine and masculine, light and dark…Opposites!

My fascination with the words Yin and Yang caused me to delve more into this 5000 year old Chinese philosophy. The Yin Yang structure is far more defining than opposite forces. Although opposing, it is more complementary… two different energies coexisting, yet tied together. The outer circle representing everything in life…the black and white shapes representing the interaction of these two energies…a flow and balance…not one without the other.

The reporter asked, “Who is Jorge Mario Bergoglio?” to the man seated on the simple wooden chair. There was silence before he answered… “I am a sinner.”  More silence… “I am a bit astute, that I can adapt to circumstances, but it is also true that I am a bit naive.” Pope Francis… Humble… yet the Leader of the Catholic Church. Complementary forces surrounded by God’s embrace. Saint Ignatius called this discernment as he struggled to reach a higher calling. His vision, and that of Pope Francis, “Not to be limited by the greatest and yet contained in the tiniest-this is the Divine.”

Ancient Buddhist Tradition describes this balance as “The Wheel of Life;” North American Indians as a “Medicine Wheel.” Other cultures also depict life in circular motion as well…all encompassing, no beginning or end! Balance only being achieved through struggle and discernment.

When opposing forces threaten to derail my life, can I see it as a call to discernment and either repair or discard the wheel that has become damaged to once again achieve harmony and growth towards a higher calling? How and when do I use discernment?

High heels and snow could be my beginning!