It is funny how life altering journey's start with what seems like a normal day. I was struck by the fact this morning as I was watching the movie "Soul Surfer". It is the story of Bethany Hamilton, who at the age of thirteen was attacked by a shark while surfing. Her story shows a young lady of faith and how she meets head on the adversity she is presented with. The scene that stood out in my mind was when she went to Thailand after a tsunami had devastated the region. In the scene she is being told a woman's story of when the tsunami hit. "It started out as a normal day" the translator says. The actress who plays Bethany gets a look on her face, as if she is remembering that day that Had started off so normal for her, but ended with a life threatening injury and a future changed forever. In that changed future though, she was alive and so her journey began.
My mind has been on journeys lately, and this morning has been no different. I am sick today, so instead of getting up and walking on the treadmill, I decided that I should take something and lay down to try and get rid of the splitting headache I am dealing with. I turned on Joyce Meyer so that I could just lay there, listen and maybe even fall asleep. While listening, I was struck by what she was speaking about. I do not remember much, but I remember her speaking about being in the middle. On a journey there is a beginning, a middle and an end. Usually at the beginning we are ready to take our journey. We may be excited or if it is a case like Bethany's, motivated to proceed. Either way there are motivating feelings that make you look to the future with hope. We all seek the end of the journey, because that is usually where the payoff is located. What about the middle though? While we are in the middle we may seem far from those first feelings of excitement, and a long ways from the allure of the goal.
How do we stay motivated to succeed when we are in the middle? Well, at this time I feel like I have camped out in the middle. I want to move, but I have been confused. Worried. How will I move forward from this spot? What will it look like, and how will it be received? All of those questions have been asked and more. While I have asked the questions, I have not found answers to them. What I am finding is that I do not have answers to my questions, because i am asking the wrong questions. This morning reassured me of that. How do I survive the middle? By looking for direction, and take it one step at a time. By not being satisfied with the middle. Sometimes it starts to feel comfortable and looks inviting in the middle. The middle though is not the place where I belong.
My favorite song right now is one by Bob Marley. This morning tells me again how God loves me. He takes the things that speak to me and connects them together to form a picture. The song is called "Exodus", speaking of another journey. I have been listening to it a good deal this week, and I looked to find a version online. I found one done by Carlos Santanna and as I watched the youtube version was struck again by the journey. In this version of the song there are various solo's done by the band members. All while Carlos with non verbal cues prompts various musicians to play solo's at different parts of the song. At one point the man at the piano, the fantastic Herbie Hancock, starts to play some different notes that at first sound somewhat discordant to me. As you continue to listen though, he brings these notes into line and eventually brings the music right where it meets up with the other musicians. Again...another moment in the middle. It reminded me of life. We start this journey off like the song, musicians and vocalists all in harmony making a sound that is smooth and flowing. Then in the middle we hear some rougher notes, some left turns and we wonder what happened to our smooth and flowing journey, but in the end the Master Composer is bringing in this melody to it's gorgeous ending with fluidity and grace.
That is what helps me survive the middle. Knowing that even these tweaky notes are adding to the melody of the song that is my life. ok...that is kinda corny, but you get the message.
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