I’ve heard this saying numerous times. The lotus blooms from the mud.
I think many of us use this statement to help ourselves feel better about whatever mud we’re in, literally or metaphorically. In order for me to bloom in all my beauty, maybe I need pain and suffering. Or, I can find a way to appreciate the pain and suffering I’m in, because I know that the most beautiful of flowers – the lotus – needs mud to grow.
I think both make sense. It does ease my heart to know that beauty can rise from my mud – or that from murking through my mud, I will emerge as my most beautiful.
But…
I no longer believe I need to suffer in order to grow. I no longer believe that my stumbling blocks and most painful moments are put in my life because I NEED to LEARN something.
They’re just here.
I believe I can grow and find joy with less and less suffering. Or maybe even no suffering. As someone who was taught that the more pain and hardship I experienced, and the more I sacrificed for God (like telling my mom to leave me in order to serve the man that we, at the time, thought was the Messiah), the less sinful I was and the more God loved me, I am happy to say that my I no longer believe in that God. I no longer believe I have to pay for the sins of my ancestors. I no longer believe God needs me to move trials and tribulations so that I can prove my devotion or soothe God’s heart.
I believe in love.
Love does not require pain and suffering from us, and love loves us through the pain and suffering we’re in. Love reminds me to put my hand on my heart with tenderness and compassion. Love whispers in my ear that I can more easily ease through the pain and suffering when I give up at least a bit of my fighting against it and I release my resistance. Love shines a light on the beauty and love within me – and surrounding me – to offer me hope for the next moments and beacons to guide me home. Love lovingly suggests that I find a way to distract myself, that I remind myself of all the good and joy in my life, that I look for what’s right and what brings a smile to my face and splendor to my heart.
For today I may be challenged by people and situations that are tough for me. But again, they’re just here. And I don’t have to stay challenged. They’re not here because I need to prove something. They’re not here because I need to suffer because I’m bad. They’re not here because I need more mud in order to emerge.
Moving through what is in my day – the good, the bad, the hard, the easy, the mud, the muck, the sunshine – with as much ease and laughter as possible will help my lotus bloom in its greatest beauty.
I’d love to hear your thoughts, and please share this post with others if it resonates with you!
Photo by Shashank Hudkar on Unsplash
