The other day I was walking near the bay when I noticed some mushrooms. They were beautiful: a delicate yellow color with a largish soft orange spot right in the center. They were tall, slender and etherial looking and altogether pleasure to see.
I've noticed mushrooms cropping up in unusual places during this wet weather. Storms that left the trails muddy also encouraged mushroom spoors to sprout. The ones on my favorite hillside trail were more common-looking than those I saw by the Bay: squat and about 2 inches in diamater with thick stems and colored the familiar creamy white that paint stores label "mushroom".
After a few more days of deluge, dog and I ventured out to the ridge trail again to grab some fresh air and exercise while the skies were clear. There I noticed that the trail side 'shrooms were HUGE! The rain had made them twice the size as they were last week. I was very impressed with their new girth and their ability to grow so quickly.
Ahah! Another message from the universe.
Lately there's been a lot of metephorical bad weather in my life. Stress around kids, money, housing, and, last but not least, a dying parent. Lots to deal with emotionally. I remember that water is the element of emotion (the Cups in the Tarot deck) and the the mushrooms' reaction to the pouring rain reminds me that all this emotional storm is teaching me a valuable lesson.
What I'm learning is how to be big enough to enjoy my life in the midst of my anxiety; to embrace the trouble and open my umbrella wide: not to protect myself, but to have a larger surface to recieve what solutions might come. I remind myself that all I have is this moment, and that change is inevitable, and that what seems unendurable now will pass.
Until then, I'm learning not to just weather the storm, but have to fun with it. I can put on a raincoat and some wellies, splash around in the puddles, and get creative with what's at hand. This new attitude helps me trust myself. As I behave in positive ways, I develop a positive attitude: positive enough to know that I CAN grow large enough, quickly enough, to hold the enevitable flux and flow of my life until the sun shines again. In the meantime, I'm singing in the rain!
Love, Kristine
