A Silver Lining
I’m sure you’ve heard the metaphor, “every cloud has a silver lining“, but what does that really mean? Its metaphoric meaning is, “to always be optimistic” or to always find the “good” in every situation. But can that always be done? What about at work, where no matter how hard you try to improve a troubling situation, it just continues to slide downhill? Or maybe your partner is acting in unacceptable manner towards you? Where is the good then?
The key for me has always been, “What change do I need to make that will help to improve the present situation?” The present situation being ME. What can I change about ME, not to please the other person, but to improve upon myself.
Do you really believe that everything that happens is for good?” Most likely the answer is No! You can’t just lie to yourself and say, “It’s all good!” Wisdom is not developed through the act of denial or by whistling in the dark. The only way anything can be seen as “good” is by our labeling it as so. And that is called “PERCEPTION”. Perception that is based on our history: memories, experiences, education, religious beliefs, etc. Perception is judgement. Unless you truly understand what’s happening, without judging it as good or bad, there can be no understanding of any kind. Most of us use our intellect to “understand” a situation. Although important for many situations we are confronted with in life, “intellect” is based on our thoughts (judgements) about things and how they operate (learned experiences). My thoughts are part of the problem; so my thoughts, or intellect, cannot help me to understand.
Wisdom is an “internalized” knowing. The saying, “as we get older, we get wiser” doesn’t mean we’re tainted by our past experiences as so we “know better”. It means we have developed within us a deep trust in the true order of the Universe. That trust is only active and alive in the present moment.
Today is the only day that you can take action to improve upon your “perception” of any situation. The present is the only moment that we can see “the silver lining” because NOW is the true essence of wisdom. Knowing the truth of who you really are (FABULOUS) is good.
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