These days we are learning from Brene Brown about the benefits of vulnerability on a grand scale—see her Ted Talk: The Power of Vulnerability; let’s also look what the ancient feminine based wisdom text The Tao Te Ching has to say about this in chapter 35,2:

The soft and weak overcome the hard and strong.

I remember reading this the very first time at the age of 17 with a slightly different translation, expressing that water (being soft and weak) overcomes what is hard and strong (stone, rock).

In my life I have paid a high price for loosing openness and flexibility; insisting that things to go a certain way. And it is tempting to do just that. After all we made plans: ‘He should have black curly hair, dark brown eyes, a body like Bruce Lee, be kind and loving. He should know what I feel and want beforehand, so I don’t have to ask. And of course, he needs to be at least 3 inches taller than me.’

Who of us hasn’t played with those wish lists or orders to the Universe on a personal or business level? There are some of us who still make those lists. And there is nothing wrong with it. It may just not work out exactly like planned.

It doesn’t matter what we wish or plan for, we always need to stay flexible. Roadblocks may come up, situations constantly change, certainly in my life they do a lot. And when I am not willing to flow around the ‘rock’ I usually hurt myself with my narrow attitude.

“No, I wanted it differently!” “I never wanted to lose this blissful experience; I never wanted….”, you fill it in.

I met so many people who wanted things a different way, sticking to their unwillingness to be vulnerable or flexible. That’s a painful way to live.

Of course, I learned the hard way myself. Even now as I sit and write, my circumstances are in no way the way I had planned them. I am asked to increase my flexibility. I have to find my way in this ‘unwanted’ set of circumstances, so I don’t bang my head on the rock.

Is it easy? No, no and no.

Some time ago I learned a small process that frees up stuck energy. It starts with what I call admitting to myself how I really feel in this moment. Here it is:

  1. Admit to yourself either in writing or in speech (when you are home alone) how bad you really feel about this unwanted thing you have to deal with.
  2. Express these feelings full blast, no holding back. Understand that this is just blasting energy (emotion) out of your system.
  3. Do it until you feel a shift in your energy. It can take 5 or 10 minutes, sometimes longer.

Admitting to yourself how you really feel clears the air, it frees the energy every single time. To me it is almost like a miracle, because afterwards I lighten up. I remember to ask my inner guidance how I can flow like water around the rock. I do this small process because I don’t like outer circumstances to break me. Please try it out and let me know how it worked for you.

It always takes awareness (mindfulness, heartfulness) to switch from the resistant place to finding a new way. But it is worth to practice being soft and vulnerable—allowing our inner nature to be our wholeness navigator one way or another.

So, maybe, just maybe these situations regarding the virus are creative challenges if we don’t oppose them. Maybe we find ways we never would have found before.