Top Ten Puzzling “P” Of Vulnerability

You may know the tale of the Princess whose sleep was highly Perturbed by the Presence of a little Pea Purposely Placed under her many mattresses … I tell you, the things you have to do to be a Princess are just Phenomenal! This Top Ten Piece is another “P” story, designed to have a Practical look at how, by using so many mattresses just to not feel vulnerable, there may come a Point where you are Playing a losing game! And let us Peacefully contemplate what might be your cost to opting into that Practice! You may Possibly decide that Perceiving the Pea (feeling the wound) may be where the Pot of gold is. And Please remember: this is just a fairy story!nn1. Potential And Vulnerability nHave you ever set a goal for yourself, any kind of goal, to better your physical endurance, to write a book, to learn Spanish? Have you noticed that, each time you did set a goal, sooner or later there would be an obstacle on your way to the “goal forum”, as if destiny was asking you: Just how bad do you really want it? When the dark cloud of the obstacles hits, you may either sink into the fog, or you may have the strength to go through the uncertainty, until the path to your goal is clear again. Taking the risk of the cloudy uncertainty is accepting to be vulnerable. That is growth in action, and the unfolding of the greatness of YOU! nn2. Presence And Vulnerability nYou very probably have had the experience of asking someone how she was and hearing words like “fine” or “great” that were not matching the resonance of the voice. Why not be authentic: “I’ve had a hard day today. Thanks for asking!”? Be bold enough to be vulnerable, and to share your challenges, your mishaps, and your quirks. If you are not real, how can you be perceived as such? When you are present to your truth, you will educe trust because you are in direct contact with life itself. Thus your voice, unusually refreshing, will earn a hearing. nn3. Passion And Vulnerability nI remember seeing a provocative poster whose tag line was: “Expose yourself to art!” It is true that to create, one has to be naked, unnamed, and totally exposed to the winds of inspiration. And indeed, the difference between a good artist and a great artist, shall you ever wonder, is the ability to take risks, to make the jump, and boldly go where she has not gone before… In that sense, mastery and vulnerability go hand in hand: They meet at the edge, at the limit where you may either lose it or gain it all. The question remains: Can you, if only for an instant, have the courage to lose control? Warning: A “yes” will lead you to your heART! nnn4. Plans And Vulnerability nSpeaking of control, I have the greatest respect for the P of Plans. God knows I have practiced it to Perfection! As a matter of fact, perfection and planning go very well together. They gently (or not so gently) bring us back to the title of this Mahazine: Stop Trying so hard. Have there been any plans that have ever worked? And why a Plan if there is no Problem? It is really much more fun to trust, trust that when you train- solution will come; there is nothing you can do to stop it, nothing you can do to miss it, because it is YOUR train, YOUR solution, YOUR answer: that is as simple as that! nn5. Protection And Vulnerability nYour Protection, along with your obsession with Planning, is the beginning of a dreaded breakdown. If there is a constant in this world, it may very well be change: such change is the nature of life! If you could only thank your mind for sharing its fear, and command it to let go of its fixation, of its comfort zone that needs to have things in a certain fixed way… Be unsafe: your security lies in the understanding that you are, that we all are vulnerable. The many mattresses you have Placed on top of the Pea had for first Purpose to Permit the recognition of your own nobility! nn6. Pleasing And Vulnerability nThat is the biggie: it was for me, to genuinely speak my voice and to my own self be true, even if it meant to disappoint a friend! I was terrified she would no longer like me, if I did speak, and so scared of real intimacy, of letting her “into me see.” And I spoke. And she did no longer like me. And although it hurt at first, I saw something of great import: I realized I started liking me, even loving me, for standing by me. I survived the grand fear of rejection, doubled by the fear of being alone. Well, what is the point of being with others if you do not like the company you keep with yourself? How nurturing and comforting can that be, really? nn7. Projections And Vulnerability nWomen and men appear to project different images on what vulnerability means. Women simply swallow their talents, in the fear that expression will cause them to be dismissed, repudiated, or divorced from the relationship that is the very source of their survival. Men, on the other hand, are concerned to maintain the status quo at all costs. They are afraid that if they were to open up in public, show their emotions, and be real, they would be laughed at, ridiculed… and divorced from the relationship that is the very source of their survival. What about you? How long will you abandon yourself, just for the sake of survival, before you show up? nn8. Poise And Vulnerability nThe thought of basic survival naturally meets the thought of the body… And the thought of the body, for many of us, evokes attack. In battle, if you’re afraid while facing your opponent, you will be struck down, because the belief is that “he is better, bigger, stronger than I am!” However, if you stay out of your ego mind for a while, (which may be the only battle to ever win), then you may find yourself aware of the moment, of your body, of its vulnerabilities. That knowing will have you move instinctively and in harmony with what your environment calls for, with the experience of right now. And yes, you may call that "Poise", and may call that “Peace.”nn9. Perspective And Vulnerability n"Our ethical traditions know how to deal with suicide, homicide, and even genocide; but these traditions collapse entirely when confronted with biocide, the extinction of the vulnerable life systems of the Earth, and geocide, the devastation of the Earth itself. . . The human is at a cultural impasse. . . Radical new forms are needed." Thomas Berry, The Great Work: Our Way Into the 21st Century. Here is a perspective that touches us all. Possibly humankind is now confronting this impasse, because of our fear to be vulnerable. Could it be that we have brought forward as a group the biggest, most challenging wound, just because we were afraid to lick our small wounds?nn10. Power And Vulnerability nTo be powerful demands that you would be truthful. To be truthful demands that you would be honest. To be honest demands that you would let go and surrender the fear to be vulnerable. Such is the Paradox: that vulnerability would lead you right into the gold mine, (hear “the god mind”) that nurtures and feeds your very power… It is the knowing that, no matter what happens, you are sufficient as you are. That you are whole and connected. That you are found rather than seeking. That you are no longer waiting for someone to save you, because YOU ARE FREE.n