You are at ground zero, at the point of utter inertia.You feel as if you are sinking in a dark crevice, where the rays of light seem now an unreachable utopia. But you can’t stop thinking about them. You can’t stop thinking of and desiring the light. And then, in most absolute silence, in the deepest darkness, a sound timidly springs into existence. It is the sound of silence. Of your silence. Of your heart. It is that flame that is still flickering inside you. So what if you thought you had lost it? So what if you actually lost it for a while? It is stubbornly reignited once again. It is the flame of your own Momentum. Your instinctive power, your ardor and your incessant movement from inertia to light. And you are reborn out of your ashes. As, according to mythology, the Phoenix does in the eternal circle of life.
It is understandable that, in the regeneration of the phoenix, in the regeneration of every person out of their ashes, some stages are necessary to elapse. Having searched for the foundations, for the solid mold in which you choose to rebuild your life from scratch, you are missing nothing for your start but one thing, your momentum. The momentum, that is, the speed you need as well as the dynamics, those favorable conditions which you have to create so that you can achieve the final stage of regeneration. The analysis of each person’s momentum is not identical. Different people of different “mass”, in other words of different identity, personality, experiences and traits obtain their own individual speed. Their individual momentum. Slow, fast, steady or variable –it doesn’t matter. There is no issue of comparison with regard to regeneration. By definition it constitutes a clearly personal matter and will come only when the stagnation in the ashes becomes heavy, dull or painful. Every person needs to reach their own ashes and their own limitsin order to get the boost to make the decision to change. After all, it is not possible for everyone to be recreated into the new phoenix at the same pace. Regeneration is perceived differently, as a simple change in our routine or a decisive life step. What matters is to create those favorable conditions, to determine the speed you want and to move towards one sole direction: that of change.
But what is it which urges you to change? What gives you the internal powerto escape your old self and to seek its better version? And the crucial question is how can you find that boost? how can you look for it if it never shows itself to you? The first step in order to receive the boost you desire is to realize that who you are at the moment or the situation you are in does not make you evolve, but rather causes stagnation and pain, creating a foreign self. The realization of a negative situation and the desire for renewal constitute in themselves the strongest boost in order to find the way to actualize it.
During your journey towards change, many Sirens may sing. Don’t feel guilty in case you momentarily wanted to surrender to them. Nobody can promise you that the journey will be short and full of light. On the way, it is very likely that you will encounter a great deal of darkness and silence. Don’t fear. Even in the coldest darkness and in deathlike silence, remember that stubborn flame that will always burn in you. Trust your path, whatever that may be. Trust the process. The obstacles are there to make you stronger. Don’t think you are going back to inertia, back to the starting point. Every obstacle you overcome, every difficulty you face brings you closer and closer to the light of your destination. Everything is part of the evolution. Your evolution. The one you owe yourself. Thus, don’t let others put out your flame. You are responsible for it. Love and take care of it. It is your urge, your dynamic, your motive power. It is your own unique Momentum. Don’t compare it to that of others. You don’t need anxiety for change. You don’t need to compare yourself to the achievements and progress rates of others. Each one of us has different baggage, a different journey and a different destination.
Consequently, the ashes, the bottom,the rut is not really the end. It is simply the end of a period. It is ground zero. The point where the speedometer of the marathon of life shows zeroand you begin all over again. It is a warning for change,the much-desired trigger for you to wake up and come out to the top again. Your ashes and failures are not pointless. If you fell, it means you tried. You fell, hurt, failed. But you won. You won what you are now. You earned the will to change, to mature, to be reborn. As N. Kazantzakis once said: “If one doesn’t reach the edge of the cliff, they won’t grow wings on their backs to fly”. Hence, when you reach your most difficult cliff, don’t quail and fall. Find your momentum then, the urge and the power you need, so that you can grow wings and fly.
Translation: Asimenia Chliara
Review: Niki Saridaki