Sometimes You Get Caught in the Rain...

Like I did a couple of weeks ago. When I locked the doors at work, it was dry and cool outside. By the time I was done closing and ready to leave, it was raining. No. Pouring.

I'm usually the person who carries an umbrella in her bag, just in case, but my umbrella broke. And assuming that the day would stay as beautiful as it had been that morning, I didn't think to grab one from the house. In fact, I didn't have any sort of jacket with me at all. So I just let the rain happen.

All around me the bar hoppers of the East Village scurried in super high heels and inappropriately tight jeans: just trying to get from awning to awning without running mascara and mused hair. (And failing gloriously, I might add!) And there I was strolling along toward Union Square as though pounds of water were not poring over me.

The way I see it, you can only get so wet. There's no a-little-bit-soaked, or, sort-of-soaked; there is just soaked. And if I was going to be soaked by the time I got to the train, I might as well walk calmly and not fall on my ass as well. Soaked is better than soaked AND bruised.

As I walked, I began to see a comparison to wet weather and truth.

Sometimes we just meander through life with a sunny day mentality: things are going smoothly, and we are content with the truth as is. These are the wonderful calm seasons in life when we can just bask in peace and simply be. Then there are the foggy or snowy times, when we can't see far in front or behind and we must content ourselves with only seeing the next step, and then the next, and then the next: slowly making our way without any surety of where we will end up.

I look at both of these periods as prepping us for growth. The sun warming us and the fog/snow forcing us to slow down. But we cannot stay in either. Too much sunlight, and we whither and dry up; Too much fog, and we become confused and depressed; Too much snow, and our hearts grow cold.

Enter truth... Those life giving, soul affirming little nuggets that we stumble upon that make the journey worth pursuing. The 'pearls of wisdom' that help us grow, make us change, and confirm what we know.

Sometimes they fall in a soft mist, covering us in fine droplets that reveal their secrets slowly over time. Sometimes they come down in small showers throughout the day; opening our eyes a little at a time. And sometimes they blow in with gale force, shake us to the core, and uproot everything we thought we knew.

Lately, for me, truth has come down in a steady sheet from the heavens into my heart. Like a rainstorm that splashes into your boots and turns your umbrella inside out and soaks you in spite of all protections you thought you had in place, truth has enveloped me... Soaked and shivering I have decided to turn my face to the sky and accept the storm. And with that acceptance comes remarkable growth. I have come to know more about who I am and what I am here for.

I challenge you: when the next rainstorm enters your life, leave the boots and umbrella at home... At least metaphorically... And let yourself get drenched.