Finding Life Outside the Rut

Every closed eye is not sleeping, and every open eye is not seeing – Bill Cosby

Things are not always as they seem. We know that about life. We know that about ourselves. Sometimes the inner me and the outer me are in harmony, while at other times they aren’t on the same page – and may not even be in the same book.

We are in the dog days of summer, and most of us have gotten into a routine that works. I’ve finally gotten the watering schedule down around the house to where the grass has greened up and needs to be mowed far more often than I had expected I would need to do it. Mowing is a chore, and I haven’t got my lungs adjusted to the higher altitude (another way of saying I think I am out of shape – although I have been told I have the body of a god – probably Buddha).

The point is that we often find comfort in our routines. We get used to doing things a certain way or at specific times and we have no desire to change those things. It is like the age-old adage: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

The problem with routines, though, is they can lead to complacency. We become attached to our routines, and we lose flexibility – our ability to change as conditions or situations change. We begin to slide from a life of vitality, to just plain living (or getting by).

It isn’t that just plain living or getting by is bad (sometimes that’s an improvement over a life that is chaotic or uncertain – it is amazing how an ill-timed rain can turn a crop of rich horse hay into generic cow feed). On the contrary, routines are good as they provide predictability and order to our lives, which promotes peace and reduces anxiety.

However, as good as those things are, routines can also dull the senses and blind us to interesting things going on around us. They can inhibit us from reaching out and stretching our faith. They can prevent us from growing and adapting to life as it changes. Routines can box us in and keep us from ever developing to our best potential.

So what might we do?

A good place to start is simply asking yourself how you’re doing. Find a quiet time and space away from all distractions. Sit upright (as if on a plane preparing to land) with feet on the floor, all electronic devices stowed away, and eyes either closed (so you can concentrate on your other senses) or open (so you can focus on something that holds special meaning for you, like the flame of a candle, or a cross, or picture of a loved one, or something you connect with the “holy”).

Once you’re comfortable and quiet, ask yourself how you’re doing. How do you feel? Alive? Sad? Bored? Satisfied? Confused? Fulfilled? Empty? Connected? Isolated? Peaceful? Anxious?

Once you have a sense of how you feel – or how you’re doing – then stay there for a while and become acquainted (as with a friend). If you’re not happy with where you are, then what changes can you make that might help you move out of that funk or predicament? What might you do to become more alive or responsive to the world around you? You can’t necessarily change people, places, or situations around you, but you CAN change yourself.

You may not be where you want to be, but you are where you are. If one wants to go anywhere in life, one must start from where they are. It only makes sense, and having a sense of where you are can’t help but give you a stronger foundation for making changes that will move you out of a life-dulling rut and into a life-giving routine.

May God grant us all eyes to see and ears to hear – for that is Good News in this, our valley.