Cultivating Fluidity in the Face of Adversity

By Eliza Wing

Bruce Lee, that master of power, concentration, stillness in one brief life famously said, “be like water, my friend”

As we continue to work with external and internal challenges, we would do well to remember this saying and to consider what it might mean for us. I believe that what Lee is pointing to is that in order to be truly strong and resilient in the face of difficulties, we need to embody fluidity.

Think of it, a boxer knows that to take a hit well, she must sink into the power of the punch, she must give a little to dull the blow. So, too, we will do better in the face of adversity if we don’t stand rigidly against it. After all, it does no good to rail against our pain and suffering. Doing so only increases both. Instead, can we look for our soft, tender inner core that allows for pain and sorrow, acknowledging that all beings suffer and that we are part of a greater whole? Can we see that in our tenderness we can find ways of accommodating, adjusting and, finally emerging into some new place?

If tears come (your own water source), let them come. If your heart hurts, let it be so. As you allow for these feelings in the face of suffering, you may find a new truth, a new understanding. Breathe. Allow. Open. Follow your mind stream and see the tender strength that you embody.