Anchors Away!
MrDon
Registrant
This is something that I wrote tonight and just wanted to share it with everyone. It was written more for myself, but hopefully it will touch others as well.
Anchors away!
07/23/02
Don Shetterly
Have you ever been in one of those terrible storms where the wind blows with a fierce power like you have never seen? Or how about one of those hurricanes with winds that seem like they will never give up and they just keep pounding against your house? What about the winds of spring that can blow so strong that they almost stop you in your tracks or at least make your steps very difficult?
These winds can sometimes make us wonder about our footing and how we will survive. They sometimes will make us tire when we need our strength the most. And yet we have no control over them. They come out of nowhere and hurl their strength against us as we face all odds to just to hold on during these times. They are not patient in their surprise, nor are they willing to wait until we are well prepared. These winds have a mind of their own and their howl must at times just be heard.
My life seems to be a series of these storms and I am not sure if I am situated in the wrong plane of this world or if it is because my ship is sailing into a new horizon. I feel like I keep getting battered from one storm after another and at times I sit here and wonder when the storms will end. It does get very difficult at times when my body is weak and tired, and yet another storm comes from an unseen place to unleash its power on me.
I grew up in a part of the country where tornadoes were frequent visitors during the summer and so I witnessed some of the destruction that these storms left behind. More recently, I have lived in areas where hurricanes were forces of nature that I had never witnessed before. Some of these hurricanes have left an imprint in my mind of the destruction and change that they bring. After they passed through, it was like it was a new world or a world that had drastically changed and yet at the same time, was still the same.
During these storms, we would prepare as much as we could before they struck land and when the storm arrived we would find a safe place to hide and wait the storm out. I remember so vividly, one hurricane just beating the house where I was staying. And for two solid hours, the floors and the walls of the house shook as if there was a violent force within the boards. It was one of the scariest times I have ever had in a storm. I will never forget those times and then walking out the next morning to a vastly different world. The world was not the same that morning as it had been just a few hours before.
As I think about these storms, and how I weathered them, it brings me to a conversation I recently had on how do I handle the storms of my life. Frankly, until I thought about it, I wasnt sure. I didnt think I handled the storms very well and felt that they were just knocking me all over the place. But a wise person very simply told me that there must be something I was doing to make it through them. And then I had to stop and really think about what that was. What is it that keeps me going when everything in my life seems to be against me? What is it that keeps me going when I dont feel I can take one more step or that I am too tired to move another muscle? And as hard as the questions were for me to ask myself, the answers slowly dragged their feet into view.
There are things in my life, which I refer to as anchors. An anchor is something that will hold a ship secure in a storm. It is something that will hold a house secure through so many turbulent times. It is something that holds a person to the ground when they have nothing to hold on to. It is these anchors that I have had to hold on to even when I didnt realize that I was holding on to them. These anchors are what gave me solid footing to take my next step whether it was into new horizons or whether I was just trying to seek safety.
And then I had to begin thinking about what my anchors were. One of my anchors includes a time when I was paralyzed and had to make a choice. The choice was whether my life would end that day or whether I would make the decision to fight against all odds and begin walking again. No it was not an easy choice because my mind was exhausted and decisions were very difficult. However the decision I made to fight with all the strength I had left, to not let my life end but move forward is one of the most solid anchors I have. It is an anchor that has so much inner strength for me and when my life is almost lost in the fog, I can go back and ground myself with this anchor. I can place my feet in this point in time and get my footing long enough to move forward.
Another anchor I have is a very close and dear person in my life. This friend is a strong support for me and is always there for me no matter what. They have seen me in some of my worst times and rejoiced with me through some of the good times. The anchor of knowing that someone like this exists helps me to find refuge when the winds of the storm are just too strong.
My music and my creativity is another anchor that I have because these things allow me to go where sometimes my conscious mind does not allow me to travel. It allows so many parts of myself to connect to somewhere deep within that it allows me to become grounded once again. When things were just too much to face, I have often found that my words and my music were my only escape and my only connection with reality.
Being outside in nature with all the chirpy bugs, flying things, crawling insects, alligators and snakes, is one of my anchors. During these times that I can just go and be with the wind as it blows through the trees or the water as it ripples across the pond or even the ducks as they waddle around from place to place; I feel far apart from the things in life which bring me pain. It is a sense of belonging, fitting in, fulfillment and just being in the right place at the right time. Everything seems to be in balance at these times, which sometimes is a most welcome relief from my chaotic life.
Sitting on a beach next to the Atlantic Ocean is one of my strong anchors. For if I sit there long enough, I can feel the strength of the waves as they come crashing into the shore. Then I see them leave as if they are taking away all the worries, pains, heart ache and fears that I have out into the deep blue sea where they will be washed away for good. There is so much power and strength for me when I sit beside the ocean. It will always be one of my anchors and probably the one that brings me so much strength and peacefulness to my life.
So after I think about it, there are many things that I hold on to during the times when the storms blow against me. And if I continue to realize that during these times, I must hold on to my anchors, than I will survive these storms. Probably, if time were given the chance, it would cover the anchors with so much debris that I would not be able to find them. So maybe with the storms, it brings perspective as well and it allows me to be able to locate my anchors when I need them most. I am sure that as I continue into a new horizon that I will discover more anchors that I have and that I just am not aware of.
If you are facing terrible storms in your life, I invite you to think about what your anchors are. When you can name them, hold on to them and dont let them out of your site. These anchors will always be there, even when you need them the most.
Anchors away!
07/23/02
Don Shetterly
Have you ever been in one of those terrible storms where the wind blows with a fierce power like you have never seen? Or how about one of those hurricanes with winds that seem like they will never give up and they just keep pounding against your house? What about the winds of spring that can blow so strong that they almost stop you in your tracks or at least make your steps very difficult?
These winds can sometimes make us wonder about our footing and how we will survive. They sometimes will make us tire when we need our strength the most. And yet we have no control over them. They come out of nowhere and hurl their strength against us as we face all odds to just to hold on during these times. They are not patient in their surprise, nor are they willing to wait until we are well prepared. These winds have a mind of their own and their howl must at times just be heard.
My life seems to be a series of these storms and I am not sure if I am situated in the wrong plane of this world or if it is because my ship is sailing into a new horizon. I feel like I keep getting battered from one storm after another and at times I sit here and wonder when the storms will end. It does get very difficult at times when my body is weak and tired, and yet another storm comes from an unseen place to unleash its power on me.
I grew up in a part of the country where tornadoes were frequent visitors during the summer and so I witnessed some of the destruction that these storms left behind. More recently, I have lived in areas where hurricanes were forces of nature that I had never witnessed before. Some of these hurricanes have left an imprint in my mind of the destruction and change that they bring. After they passed through, it was like it was a new world or a world that had drastically changed and yet at the same time, was still the same.
During these storms, we would prepare as much as we could before they struck land and when the storm arrived we would find a safe place to hide and wait the storm out. I remember so vividly, one hurricane just beating the house where I was staying. And for two solid hours, the floors and the walls of the house shook as if there was a violent force within the boards. It was one of the scariest times I have ever had in a storm. I will never forget those times and then walking out the next morning to a vastly different world. The world was not the same that morning as it had been just a few hours before.
As I think about these storms, and how I weathered them, it brings me to a conversation I recently had on how do I handle the storms of my life. Frankly, until I thought about it, I wasnt sure. I didnt think I handled the storms very well and felt that they were just knocking me all over the place. But a wise person very simply told me that there must be something I was doing to make it through them. And then I had to stop and really think about what that was. What is it that keeps me going when everything in my life seems to be against me? What is it that keeps me going when I dont feel I can take one more step or that I am too tired to move another muscle? And as hard as the questions were for me to ask myself, the answers slowly dragged their feet into view.
There are things in my life, which I refer to as anchors. An anchor is something that will hold a ship secure in a storm. It is something that will hold a house secure through so many turbulent times. It is something that holds a person to the ground when they have nothing to hold on to. It is these anchors that I have had to hold on to even when I didnt realize that I was holding on to them. These anchors are what gave me solid footing to take my next step whether it was into new horizons or whether I was just trying to seek safety.
And then I had to begin thinking about what my anchors were. One of my anchors includes a time when I was paralyzed and had to make a choice. The choice was whether my life would end that day or whether I would make the decision to fight against all odds and begin walking again. No it was not an easy choice because my mind was exhausted and decisions were very difficult. However the decision I made to fight with all the strength I had left, to not let my life end but move forward is one of the most solid anchors I have. It is an anchor that has so much inner strength for me and when my life is almost lost in the fog, I can go back and ground myself with this anchor. I can place my feet in this point in time and get my footing long enough to move forward.
Another anchor I have is a very close and dear person in my life. This friend is a strong support for me and is always there for me no matter what. They have seen me in some of my worst times and rejoiced with me through some of the good times. The anchor of knowing that someone like this exists helps me to find refuge when the winds of the storm are just too strong.
My music and my creativity is another anchor that I have because these things allow me to go where sometimes my conscious mind does not allow me to travel. It allows so many parts of myself to connect to somewhere deep within that it allows me to become grounded once again. When things were just too much to face, I have often found that my words and my music were my only escape and my only connection with reality.
Being outside in nature with all the chirpy bugs, flying things, crawling insects, alligators and snakes, is one of my anchors. During these times that I can just go and be with the wind as it blows through the trees or the water as it ripples across the pond or even the ducks as they waddle around from place to place; I feel far apart from the things in life which bring me pain. It is a sense of belonging, fitting in, fulfillment and just being in the right place at the right time. Everything seems to be in balance at these times, which sometimes is a most welcome relief from my chaotic life.
Sitting on a beach next to the Atlantic Ocean is one of my strong anchors. For if I sit there long enough, I can feel the strength of the waves as they come crashing into the shore. Then I see them leave as if they are taking away all the worries, pains, heart ache and fears that I have out into the deep blue sea where they will be washed away for good. There is so much power and strength for me when I sit beside the ocean. It will always be one of my anchors and probably the one that brings me so much strength and peacefulness to my life.
So after I think about it, there are many things that I hold on to during the times when the storms blow against me. And if I continue to realize that during these times, I must hold on to my anchors, than I will survive these storms. Probably, if time were given the chance, it would cover the anchors with so much debris that I would not be able to find them. So maybe with the storms, it brings perspective as well and it allows me to be able to locate my anchors when I need them most. I am sure that as I continue into a new horizon that I will discover more anchors that I have and that I just am not aware of.
If you are facing terrible storms in your life, I invite you to think about what your anchors are. When you can name them, hold on to them and dont let them out of your site. These anchors will always be there, even when you need them the most.
