A New Paradigm of Trust

Chaos still seems to be reigning supreme, at least from my viewpoint. It seems like individuals are dealing with all kinds of trauma and drama including strange illnesses and health concerns, deaths, personal changes, loss and anxiety, job struggles, fears, and above all; challenges.  It seems, that which you are most worried about or afraid of, is now "in your face". 

Throughout the ages, whenever people, either individuals or groups, have found themselves in crisis they have turned to faith- whatever they perceived that to be. But these days, the very faith systems that "held people up" seem to be crashing, somewhat suspicious, perceived as lacking, or at the very least, changing, as well.  We are seeing shifting in religious institutions, economy structures, and government order at the same time  individuals are most grasping for something to hold on to. Hmm...

Maybe it's our very concept of faith, or trust that is being challenged.  Maybe it's time for a whole new order of thinking, that is, in fact, disorder.

In this new paradigm, I'm suggesting that trust, in the universe, the divine, higher self, God, whatever you pick, is not about praying, asking for, or expecting any outcome.  It is not about trusting that you will be "looked after", because that is attaching to an outcome.  This trust is true detachment from all and any outcomes. No ordered set of events.

In my opinion, we are programmed to consider all possible outcomes during crisis. We try to think about what could happen and plan for all outcomes. We prepare ourselves for the good, the bad, and the ugly. We don't like surprises unless they are good, so we try to buffer ourselves by considering how we might cope with negative outcomes. By being prepared to some degree for all outcomes we feel we can maintain control.  Once we have it all roughly sketched in ,we say we place our faith in something external and "trust that all will be well and we will be taken care of".

What if you really let go of control. Really. Instead of trying to consider all outcomes you allow yourself to react and respond to whatever appears without practicing your lines ahead of time. You place your trust in self. It's a trust that you can act out your life as your true core self, your soul. It's the trust that your core self, your soul not your embodiment will still "be" and can't "not be"- no matter what. You don't need to be "taken care of". When you plan for a particular outcome, or a number of them, which actually means you are worrying, you're trying to re-write the script or move ahead so you can be prepared to go back.  That's a whole lot of work, effort and angst.

This sense of letting go of control happens sometimes.  It often happens when we have "hit rock bottom".  We have spent so much time trying to figure out the outcomes and imagine all possibilities and prepare ourselves for each and every one that we take ourselves to the point of mental, and sometimes physical, exhaustion. That's when we say "I give up".  That's usually also the time when, in fact, things start to fall into place. A shift happens and we come out the other side in a new and changed way. We learn a lesson. We find a new way of being, a new solution, a gift. Hmm...

In my new paradigm of trust we would give up in the very beginning.  We would give up before we have exhausted our strength and resources. We would carry that strength with us into every response we make rather than dribble it out in preparation phases or try to save it for recovery efforts.

When you can finally find that place of "having trust" it is incredibly liberating. It is a place of reacting only to what's in front of you. In crisis management terms, it's about being in perpetual response phase rather than spending effort in prevention, preparedness and recovery.  And if we are truly honest, response phase is by far the easiest phase.  It's also the most fun. It's the high energy, adrenalin fueled, making a difference, reacting to what's obvious, phase. We are energized by that.  We see the difference we are making for ourselves and others. We say it isn't easy, but in fact it is. Everything else stops and you can focus on what's in front of you.  You don't think about what you did in the past, or what you need to do in the future, you focus on the here and now and do what's obvious. No worry.  You trust yourself to do what you need to do. And it works. It works because you just keep reacting. That's the trust. You have no idea what's going to come next.  You don't consider what you did in the past. You trust yourself to say your lines and play your part to the best of your ability. It's real life, not a rehearsal.

I was thinking about this post and how I could try and put what I was feeling into words. I often do that by walking. I was walking and remembering how liberating it was in the moments when I really could do this: let go of outcome and just "be" without worrying, trying to control, or considering outcomes. Softly and gently a feather floated onto the ground in front of me. I didn't see the bird. I will admit I don't even know what kind of bird feather this is. It was just "there".  I didn't pick it up and take it- instead I "took it" as a sign. It's today's picture.  A quick check on the Internet reveals a feather, in most Native traditions, means a "gift from the sky".  They arrive unexpectedly but not without purpose and are considered evidence of a higher spiritual partner. That's what I'm talking about! That's the trust.

The feather is a symbol of truth, lightness and ascension.  So I'm going to make it the symbol for my new paradigm of trust. Because having true trust is allowing truth, inviting lightness, and ascending to a new shifted reality.  It's peaceful. It's all about "being", and with that there is a bit of peaceful nothingness. 

It takes practice to move into a new paradigm but I'm going to try. There are some Bach Flowers that might help make this shift. So, my New Paradigm Bach Remedy will include Cherry Plum, Chestnut Bud, Red Chestnut, and Cerato. Cherry Plum will help let go of the fear of losing control.  Chestnut Bud will help maintain forward movement, learning from mistakes so I don't slip back into an old paradigm of control. Red Chestnut will help release that scenario creation mind that keeps putting outcomes into my head in the hopes that I'll divert energy to preparing for and worrying about something. Finally Cerato is the Bach Flower that is all about trust in self. That's where I'm placing my trust- in self. Cerato will  help keep that firm despite what the rest of the world thinks.

Release the shift!