Show Up for the Dance by William Klein

Every now and then I hear a message from two different people that tells me to pay attention to it. It’s the funniest thing. This is what people call “the universe talking to you.”

How many times have you done something you didn’t want to do only to do it and discover it was the exact thing you needed to do?

Angela Tuckerman is a clinical social worker and started her vlog “Cloud Doodles” to help people and their animals with their mental health. Angela worked with the homeless in LA for a number of years and gained valuable insights that are helping her assist others in finding meaningful strategies to overcome the greatest challenges in life. She is currently living in Italy and finding her best self with her family. She has taken up the art of Zumba dancing. As a child she never danced but always wanted to do that but just couldn’t drum up enough nerve to make it happen. Now in her early 30s she is doing it and says, “it’s never too late to face our fears. In fact, it’s an imperative that we do so.”

During her Zumba class she was learning a new move. It was tough for her to get it down and said, “sometimes you just have to throw yourself into the song and do it…. Whether you’re starting a new job, learning a new skill, or have something at work that is holding you back, the act of putting yourself out there and engaging is the key to success.” She’s right.

I also heard the same message from theologian Fr. Ron Rolheiser. Sometimes it’s just the act of doing it that exercises the spiritual muscle. In answering a question at a recent lecture, the questioner asked Rolheiser what he thought about the act of going to church when you’re not really getting much from it. Rolheiser’s response, “Stay in it.” He talked about Mother Tersesa and the dryness she experienced. Early in her life she received messages from God and then at the age of 27, she stopped hearing them. For the next 60 years she didn’t feel the connection, but the early years of experience sustained her and she remained in it. She was faithful to the memory that formed her and threw herself into life.

This is tricky. Rolheiser often quotes Daniel Berrigan, SJ. Berrigan. The great activist was asked about spiritual dryness and how to overcome it. “Sometimes your heart isn’t in it, your mind isn’t in it, but you’re in it.” Rolheiser noted someone told him that sounds like his marriage. You’re not always in it with heart and mind, but you’ve made a commitment and you’re sticking to it.

Although in certain circumstances this can be detrimental and there are times we need to get out of bad situations, it is solid logic that can serve us well. Showing up and staying with it. This is the only response we can have when facing a circumstance that is beyond us. It is the ultimate demonstration of faith to say, “I’m going to take this on and be present to it. I’m going to be the instrument I’m called to be.”  Not always easy to do.

Our lethargy gets the better of us. Our physical stamina stands in the way or our own mental roadblocks can separate us in extraordinary ways. I’ve been there. Then there’s something that happens when you get to where you need to be that tells you why you needed to be there. This is the ancient wisdom of “the universe conspiring to fulfill our dreams.”

Every path has a message on the way that is directing you to where you need to be and what you need to do in life. If we open our hearts and listen to the message, it will direct us. Being mindful and present to what the world is giving us is critical. 

I’ve been doing some work behind the scenes. One day, the leader of the kitchen put me at “the window.” It was exactly where I needed to be, as it reminded me of the why I was there. Working at the hunger center and handing out boxed lunches. A few choice encounters and something within me changed.

You aren’t always going to find the message, but if you sit back and engage at the end of your day in what was being presented, nine times out of ten, you’ll discover what you needed for the day and set yourself up for the next day. This is why the 19^th Annotation of St. Ignatius is so important. Our daily examen helps us daily track seeing where God is in our lives.

The 19^th Annotation” is a review of your day. “What was good about your day?  What was bad about it? Where did I see God in it? What can I do better?”

I’m not always great at writing this down, but, at the end of the day, “showing up” to be honest with yourself about the dance of the day, is exactly what we need to make rough times doable and rise to the level of joy in dancing right along with what the world gives us and finding the right tempo and temperament for the nature of the tune.