Destruction is not something we wish for ourselves or our loved ones. The word destruction, understandably, has only negative associations and fills one with dread. It is “the act of destroying something or the fact of being destroyed”, and who wants that! Yet, we experience and participate in destruction throughout our lives― when the work we spent years doing no longer fits us, when the business or life partnership we commited to dissolves, or perhaps when we need to give away our beautiful and thriving plants because they are toxic to our new cat. In case you’re wondering…yes, I adopted a cat named Fern and she has been a destructive force for my routine, focus and décor.
My larger point is that destruction doesn’t always occur in serious and existential ways; and while it may often appear in small ways, the change and adjustment feel difficult. And within this adjustment may lie seeds of creation. As we create our new normal, we exercise parts of ourselves that we hadn’t before and observe aspects we didn’t know existed within us. Despite our best efforts, life changes and old habits, ideas, and structures get dismantled and new ones take shape in their place. We repeatedly engage in this hard dance of destruction and creation. Fern and I are currently engaged in this dance, and our time together has been bewildering and joyful.
“May I feel all I need to feel in order to heal; may I heal all I need to heal in order to feel.”— Marguerite Rigoglioso
