I am a Blade of Grass

Do you ever have one of those days? One of those days in which no matter what you do or where you turn there is a cloud over your head that follows you and rains... and rains... and rains? So you're walking around with this cloud, soak and wet from the rain, looking for an umbrella, a hat, a piece of cardboard, anything to get under for shelter if only for a few brief moments and you finally see it, like a beacon shining in the night. You reach for it, grasp it and hold it close as the rain lifts, the clouds part and the sun shines bright once again.

Depending on your situation, your umbrella could be a lot of things. A comforting friend. A welcomed distraction. A higher power. A vigorous workout. A keyboard and a blank page. It changes from day to day. What works one day might not work on another.

Recently I was having such a rainy day. I was feeling quite sloshy and in dire need of a good pair of galoshes and, through suggestion, I got them - in the form of I Ching. An ancient Chinese text, the I Ching is based on three principles:

Simplicity - The fundamental law underlying everything in the universe is utterly plain and simple, no matter how abstract or complex some things may appear to be.

Variability - Everything in the universe is continually changing. By comprehending this, one may realize the importance of flexibility in life and may thus cultivate the proper attitude for dealing with diverse situations.

Persistence - While everything in the universe is changing, among the changing tides there is a persistent principle, a central rule, which does not vary with space and time.

To read the I Ching, I "rolled" three coins a total of six times. The three coins added up to a number and the numbers corresponded to a hexagram or symbol which then corresponded to a particular text or passage in the book.

All six of my "rolls" produced either a 7 or an 8 - pretty consistent - and that pointed to a passage about perseverance. It said that sometimes we are like a blade of grass pushing out of the earth in our effort to grow. Sometimes we are fragile and subject to stronger forces that try to push us backward into the ground, but we persevere because it is our intention, our course, to grow and to push through the difficulty. In order to do that we must remain calm within ourselves and in the face of hardship and hold tightly to the truth that we will pull through and reach toward the sky.

So it is that I am a blade of grass.

And that got me thinking... grass needs rain to grow. The hardships that temporarily set me back are just as important as the sunlight that pulls me forward. I need the rain to learn and to appreciate the sunshine. So yes, in life, a little rain must fall... but it is temporary and I will be all the greener for it. :-)