Finally, we got a break from the 5 days straight of torrential downpour in Oregon. I thought to myself, its a great day to go for a bike ride. Because the weather here is unpredictable, I grabbed my rain coat and set out on a 5 minute ride to the closest creek. It was great timing as I could hear the laughter of the school children who were outside for recess. The sound takes me back to lighter days when we knew how to have fun, just playing outside, uninhibited by masks and social distancing. As I continued my approach to the stream, I noticed the water levels were much higher than usual . I stopped for a moment to take in the patterns of the swirling water, dodging the branches and trees in its path. I closed my eyes to take in the sounds around me, the sun lightly kissing my face along with the bouts of intermittent wind. As I sat in nature I began to feel how water in its natural state can reveal so much about ourselves. In one part of the creek, water flows effortlessly along without making a sound. I imagine to be that person that “goes with the flow” and has found the balance between life’s positive and negative energies that seek to polarize us. While further down, the water is crashing and bubbling finding escape from the obstacles in the water. Again, reminiscent in life when we are met with our own obstacles. The water was not paralyzed with fear, but persevered and continued on to its final destination. It reminded me of what Bruce Lee says “be like water” , be formless. And, what he means is that people shouldn’t allow themselves to be trapped in a certain mindset. Instead, a person should be able to adapt to certain situations, grow, and change; that’s how one can adopt the qualities of water. In that moment, it made sense; I saw and felt exactly what “be like water” meant. We do not simply have to imagine ourselves as water because we ARE water! We are made of water and we can flow, effortlessly and seamlessly….it’s all in our make up to get to our destination with the right course. Water can nourish and water can destroy, and that is who we are. I was reminded today to take on more of my water element and use the waters within to form my reality into what ever I need it to be by BEING water.
