There’s always a Way Between … Think about it until you see it clearly. Shulen, the Old Warrior challenging his apprentice Ari Ara (Not This, Not That), a young orphan girl, in Rivera Sun’s novel, The Way Between. https://www.riverasun.com/
The Way Between must have been with me early one morning a few days before the Summer Solstice when this flow of words landed on the journal page in front of me.
I love being awake to watch the day dawn.
Dark mountain against the lightening sky.
First sounds of life
Winged beings flit about
Singing, not quite – testing their voice in preparation to
Greet the Day.
Hummingbird buzzes.
And, yet these woods are oh so quiet in their waking.
Gentle
in the cool morning air,
reminding me
Gentleness is the way – MY way.
Gentle with self.
Gentle with others.
Ah, ‘others’ …
Solstice Sunrise in the Woods Out Back
That particular morning I was thinking about creatures that we label as ‘pests’ – ants, mice, mosquitoes (it’s THAT season here in the mountains) - and, how often I mindlessly swat a ‘skeeter’ or squash an ant that, perhaps with at least equal mindlessness, has dared to crawl on my arm while I’m engaging in a Feldenkrais lesson. I think about this as I observe myself and others in our relationships and our conflicts with one another. I think about it in relation to working with my canine companion, Zadie Byrd, when I become frustrated or confused. I know that there are better ways.
Discovering and creating those ways, then practicing and following them with conviction and commitment is a sure path to creating a more peaceful and just world. This, my heart knows. These better ways? Most start with listening – listening to others, to nature, to self, listening within.
Shulen’s quote above is from a scene where he has told his apprentice in Azar, The Way Between, to put an end to the bullying she has been subjected to by another orphan. She is challenged to not fight (she’s committed to peace and, besides, she’d likely loose) or flee (report the perpetrator to the Head Monk at the orphanage). She must find The Way Between for this situation.
She does so, first by connecting to and acknowledging the boy’s pain and by listening to his angry, heart wrenching story. Then,
The moment opened like a door. Ari Ara saw his leap coming in slow motion. She stepped through the possibilities between fighting or fleeing and entered The Way Between. As Brol sprang at her, Ari Ara turned his momentum in midair. Softly as a snowflake in Shulen’s hand, she leveraged his flying weight into a flip and brought his body to the ground. ‘It ends here, Brol,’ she warned him in a low voice as his shocked eyes stared up at her. She held his gaze for a moment, until she saw something shift in his face. Then she stepped back and strode out of the monastery without another word. Rivera Sun, The Way Between
Ari Ara came to this strength and capability, not in a moment of sheer luck, but with months of study and training, of trials and tribulations. (Get the book, read the story, be inspired).
My own dive into exploring nonviolence and peace this summer is deepening my understanding that peace and nonviolence won’t happen ‘out there’ in our chaotic, violent world until we each create peace within and craft our lives and our systems from that place, from finding and creating The Way Between in our thoughts, words, and deeds. Listening. That is the opportunity, perhaps the necessity, of this time.
Acts and approaches that exemplify The Way Between abound in our world, often are ignored by a media seemingly trapped by the dark aura of violence and chaos. We are steeped in this culture by our language (think ‘war on poverty’); by products designed to rid us of pests of all kinds; by books, movies, games, cartoons and more. Activism can be as simple as unplugging from the systems and products that brought us to this place: being more mindful of what and from whom we purchase goods and services, and where we invest our time and our money.
I’m imagining a world where we relate, create, and make choices from The Way Between: a just and caring economic system, love for our precious planet, wellness and health systems that honor the body’s intelligence …
These are the pivots inviting us forward. What are you imagining? What are you wanting and willing to create?
Sunset - Day is Done, Rest for the Days Ahead