Drink Mud

The lotus flower, pictured above, carries beautifully symbolic meaning.  With its roots based in mud, it submerges every night into murky river water, and—undeterred by its dirty environment—it miraculously re-blooms in its stunning beauty the next morning without residue on its petals. It is a symbol of rebirth. The lotus flower blooms most beautifully from the thickest and deepest mud, which gives it all the nutrients it needs to flourish. 

Take a look at the “mud” in your life. It’s usually a mix of pain, disappointment, failure, rejection, fear, each person’s cocktail of mud is slightly different based on their unique life experience.  Mud can develop from an aloof or harsh parent, a dysfunctional family, a traumatic life event, a relationship that devastated us, financial hardships/loss, abuse… the list goes on. We all have mud. 

We all have choices.

We could be hopeless, feel it’s density, and let it pull us under.  

We could be angry and blame it for our shortcomings and pain.  

We could feel victimized that our mud is heavier or thicker than others, that we will never be radiant or successful because of it.

We could deny that it’s even there. 

Or what if we could look for the gift, the nutrients in that mud? For me, the most painful and difficult experiences I’ve had have provided the most growth and  have enriched my life. When I experienced rejection, the gift I found was self-acceptance, which bloomed into self-confidence. I have roots in the mud of loss, whose gift was finding hope in the future, failure gave me tenacity, experiencing heavy judgement developed deep empathy. I have found joy in looking at difficult experiences as a gift, sucking in the nutrients of that mud in order for me to continue to bloom.

My challenge to you today, is to reflect on a painful life experience and allow your mind to question…

”What was the gift I may have received?”

Remember, the Lotus flower blooms most beautifully from the thickest and deepest mud.