Sometimes currents take you places you don’t expect.
Last summer I spent a long weekend with friends in New York
City. I was there to cheer lead my
friends as they swam the length of the Brooklyn Bridge in the East River as
part of NYC Swims. All three are strong
swimmers and all three were not able to complete the race—along with about one
third of all of the swimmers who were part of the race. An unexpected current came about, making
dangerous conditions for the swimmers.
The event was cancelled mid-way through and the swimmers were plucked
out of the East River and brought close to shore where they swam the last 200
yards. My friends were initially
disappointed and then grew to appreciate the adventure they just had and that
all of the swimmers were safe. Under
different conditions, the swim could have been finished by all—in fact in
previous years, had been finished by all.
This year was different. The
current took them to a place they did not expect. With a story to tell from the adventure along
the way.
I find myself reflecting…where are the currents of my life
taking me? I have not written in my blog
for a while because of unexpected currents.
The currents have swept me away to places where writing in my blog has
had less importance. Writing actually was painful. A sick
son who has needed my attention. The
death of my ex-husband—a man who has been sick with Parkinson’s Disease and who
I cared for even long after our divorce.
A new position in a Charter School with work I love and a commute longer
than I anticipated. All of these
currents have swept me away from the course I thought my adventures would bring
me these past few months. And as I have
struggled with the current, some of the activities I love that feed me have not
been able to be nurtured.
The swirling of the waters continue. And momentarily I have been plucked out of
the water, with time and space. Like my
friends in the East River, who had bruises and cuts from being pulled by the
current to a wall where they clung, waiting to be picked up, I have my bruises
too. I am experiencing a weariness, not
like me. Or perhaps it is a
mourning. They are bruises that need
tending and that will heal with time.
Like my friends, who were picked up by the coast guard and brought to a
safe place to be dropped back into the water to swim to the shore line, I, too,
have been buoyed by friends and family
who have supported me along the way. And
are watching as I now swim toward the shore in safer waters.
The mourning and sadness will change to appreciation and
gratitude. And, I must say, even in the
mourning and sadness, I recognize my life with appreciation and gratitude. The currents of life change, moving through
moments of deep sadness and exhilaration.
All currents have a story to
tell. Like my swimmer friends, whose
adventure was not what they expected and excitedly talk about the next swim, I,
too, will dive into the water, knowing the next current will take me to a new
place with a new story to tell and an adventure along the way.
