Tag Archive | suffering

Architects of change

Nov15

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Change happens slowly

Change takes time

Change usually happens after suffering

We don’t learn our lessons the easy way

You’d think that we would naturally learn

To behave in a correct way

In a compassionate way

In a just way

But that’s not the path we have chosen as a society

We’re heading full speed to the edge of the cliff

And no matter what warnings we get

We are too drunk with immediate pleasure

With power and with wealth, to heed them

They say you have to hit rock bottom 

Before you are ready for change

I wonder where the rock bottom is for the human race

There are many wonderful human beings

Caring people, generous people

But overall there is more darkness than light

More greed than beneficence

More hate than love

More disunity than unity

But in the end,  all we can do is play our part

Bring light into the darkness of the world

Bring joy to our friends and neighbours

There is no magic wand

It’s up to each of us to be the architects of change

Change will happen slowly

But what we do matters

We can make a difference 

November 13th, 2020

Insight?

Apr30

 

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I wonder what we will think

When we look back at these unusual times

Days of physical isolation

Limited travel

Closed schools

Working from home

Unanswered questions

Worries and fears

 

What will we take away from this experience?

Will we be wiser?

More compassionate?

Will we be less materialistic?

Will we be more thankful for all that we have?

Will we have made new friends and connections?

Will our priorities have changed?

 

When the ground is plowed

The harvest is bountiful

The longer the stew simmers

The more delicious it is

 

Difficulties need to be followed by insight

Otherwise suffering is wasted time

 

April 30th, 2020

A new day

Oct7

 

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It’s like starting a new chapter in a book

Beginning a new day

Everything looks crisp and sharp

It’s as if I’ve woken up from a bad dream

 

It makes me thankful for the little things in life

The energy I have to do things

The joy I experience when writing 

Absence of anxiety

Socializing in a relaxed way

Making decisions more quickly

 

I sometime want to pinch myself

To see if this is reality

How can a few days make such a difference 

It’s as if the light switch has been turned on

 

I need to process what happened

In the last three months

I’m back in the land of the living

And it feels awesome

 

So many of my days were spent in fog

So much pain and suffering

But those days are over

I can turn the page

And read the rest of the story

With excitement and curiosity

 

October 7th, 2019

All I needed

Mar22

When I was in pain
All I wanted was to be listened to
To feel that someone saw and felt my pain
That they acknowledged my suffering
Without judging or giving advice
I didn’t need to be told what the silver lining was
Or how fortunate I was

Sometimes I just wanted to be held and consoled
Sometimes all I needed to hear was:
This must be so difficult for you
This would give me the strength to carry on

And this is what I have to remember
When someone else shares with me their pain

 

March 22nd, 2016

Hiding pain

Sep22

Why do we hide our pain?
Don’t we realize everyone
Experiences hardship and suffering?
Why do we only share our success
And not the challenges we had to overcome?

Why is it difficult to share these things
Things that make us feel vulnerable
Things that reveal who we are?

It takes strength to show vulnerability!
It’s easy to smile and pretend everything
Is fine and it always has been
It takes courage to admit to hardships that
We have experienced
Talking about challenges we’ve had is hard

It’s easy to share what’s on the surface
It’s not easy to reveal what is in the deep
Recesses of our heart
That’s why many of us hide our pain
Keep those emotions deep inside

September 22nd, 2015

unpaved road

Sep6

Imagine driving on a road and coming to an unpaved section
There is dust, the road is not smooth, and you slow down

There are two options at this point
Either to keep going and put up with the difficulties of the unpaved road
Or to back track a bit and find an alternate paved route

The second option requires effort
Requires searching for a new way
Even recognizing that there is an alternative

The difficulties of life are like unpaved roads
They are an invitation to look at other options
Other ways of thought
Other behaviour
In other words, growth…

But it’s up to us to accept the invitation or not
We also have the choice to continue on the gravel road
And suffer the consequences and complain
About the state of affairs and the unfairness of the situation
All the time not realizing it’s not the situation that
Has to change, it’s us!

Lida Berghuis
September 4th, 2015

I know not!

May24

It’s time to rehash the last three months
When darkness fell upon my heart
When laughter did’t come easily anymore
When sorrow reigned and hope was gone

I see the light at the end of the tunnel now
My world is beginning to become colourful again
Shades of gray are replaced by yellow, red and green
Brightness is back, dreariness is gone!

And what was the purpose of this pain?
Why this suffering again and again?
The answers may elude me now
Perhaps I’ll know the reason why
Further down the road of life
The road where surprises hide
And answers are hard to come by

I felt like I was walking in a swamp
Every movement seemed so hard
Sometimes I wonder how I persisted
How I managed to smile from time to time

Writing, my joy in life left my side
Reading, my inspiration
Seemed laborious and hard
Joy left
Mental alertness left
I was surrounded by fog

I was not efficient
Not quick on my feet
I didn’t have any bright ideas worth sharing
But what choice did I have but to go on?
What Choice did I have…. none!

My friends were by my side
They’d throw me a line from time to time
Trying to keep me afloat a bit longer
As I struggled in the currents of life

It’s almost over
I’m almost there
And I’m thankful as can be
It’s a rebirth, another one
What is the wisdom?
I know not… I know not!

Lida Berghuis
May 22nd, 2015

Blessed!

Aug5

My spontaneity
His planning ability

My fiery nature
His cool water ways

My excitement and laughter
His calm and composure

My ability to get lost
His ability to know the way

His wit and charm
My laughter and delight

His vision of the future
My admiration

His ability to grow and transform
My amazement and wonder

His genuine nature
My happiness

My strengths, his strength
Complement each other

My half, his half
Make a whole

My love, his love
Create magic!
The impossible becomes possible
The closed door opens

My suffering, his suffering
Intertwined
His patience
Like none other I have seen

Blessed to have found
His love
Blessed to serve with him!

Lida Berghuis
August 4th, 2014

Under the water of trials…

Aug2

Deep under water
Pushed down by the weight of life
A heavy load that does not allow me to emerge
From the watery grave that surrounds me

Should I give in?
Should I fight?
Do I want to live, or die?

Giving up is easy
Not much effort is required
But fighting takes courage, strength and
The will to go on

Surrounded by water
Pressed down by the weight of the world
At the juncture of
Giving up or marching on…

Once again,
I choose to fight
To laugh in the face of trials
I choose to go on…
But why?

Because I’m not one to choose the easy path
Anyone can do that
I accept the challenge
I will fight!

So, I gather all my might
Say a silent prayer
And push up!

And amazingly
The weight lifts
I emerge from water
I can breathe again
I’m alive!

I’m not alive because I fear death
I’m alive because death will come in its own good time
I need not spur it on

In a world full of trials
My mission is to march on
Giving up is not an option
Suffering has its reasons
I’m here for a reason
And to fulfil that
I will stay around…

Lida Berghuis
July 31st, 2014
Inspired by Inception sound track
and a scene in The Signature of All Things