How Can We Bow Into Our Lives?

In the wake of two devastating natural disasters, Santa Barbara county faces a challenge. 

 

The Thomas fires and mudslides have swept the ground out from under us. Entire communities have been displaced, homes have been destroyed, lives have been lost, and tranquility has been uprooted. To many, our beloved Santa Barbara may no longer feel like the sanctuary it always has. 

 

There is no cap to the emotions this tragedy can bring to our community – fear, anxiety, depression, instability, confusion. In light of this darkness, we are challenged to approach this tragedy with open hearts. Certainly, we must feel our grief fully in order to move through it. But perhaps, especially amidst chaos and disaster, we welcome compassion just as readily as we do sadness. If we can learn to bow into these sorrows (as author Jack Kornfield describes in his book After the Ecstasy, the Laundry), we embrace acceptance and thus encourage healing.