"All Growth is Forged in the Crucible of Conflict" - Robert Louis Stevenson
What does every story require to keep our attention?
Two things; A protagonists we can relate to and actively cheer on and an antagonists we can project our fear and anger on to and deeply want to see vanquished by our hero. In short, the story requires conflict. Not just any conflict, but conflict that casts doubts on the ability of the protagonist to win the day.
To keep our attention the story needs tension, moments of sublime doubt, adversity.
It is the tension created by this conflict that compels us to read further. We want to know how our hero overcomes the challenge set forth by his rival. The conclusion to this struggle is always resolved in the climax when hero and anti-hero battle it out in one final clash.
The key element is how the protagonists handles ADVERSITY.
Within the framework of our own journey, many battles are fought. More often than not, we find ourselves in over our heads. Ill prepared for the demands of the challenge.
The options are alliterated in the classic "Flight, Fight or Fright" pattern.
Challenges created through adversity are with us as part of the warp and woof of daily life. How we respond to these assaults on our psyches determine the quality of our life.
Every adverse circumstance, condition or challenge is a clarion call to live our own heroic journey, and a choice point to follow our bliss and live the life we have endeavored to imagine.
Now here is the sticky part.
We all have a closet full of fears poised to crush our will and a few gators hiding under our beds (aka our subconscious minds). Within this house of fears we all have strategies albeit mostly unconscious to handle "adversity" They consists of the standard pattern of "Fight or Flight" behaviors and its myriad derivatives.
At worst, we avoid the challenge all together hoping to live another day. At best, we manage the challenge by reducing the risk of lost. With either approach we somehow stay alive.
Is this really living?
Is there another way? Can we transcend our risk adverse tendencies which are centered on a combination of coping behaviors?
I say we can.
What is required is a new way of harnessing the power contained in the struggle. Within every challenge is the seed of an opportunity. To find this opportunity we must choose a path that supports our deepest aspirations.
How?
Rather than seeking ways to avoid, cope with, survive or manage the adversity we can choose to find the benefit hidden within, the golden nugget of transformation and personal power reclamation. Seek the benefits that will accrue to you as a direct result of your choosing to take it on.
Turn your fear into power by turning your adversity into a challenge.
The crucible of conflict need not be shied away from when you take it on as a challenge. The benefit to you is the reclamation of your authentic personal power and the realization of your real self.
Love this article. Well written and thought out. I tend to believe the old paradigm of "hero/villian" "protagonist/antagonist" is fading rapidly. The world now has too many shades of gray, "good vs evil" is now more a matter of opinion/experience, etc. I do agree strongly with the idea that most of our adversity is "within"; there are few if any shades of gray there. It is impossible to be "in the now" or even start to think about the future, if we are still cohabitating with our demons of the past. The secret (for me) of letting those demons find a new home, is forgiveness (or self and others). Am sure my way is not "the right way" for everyone; everyone has different paths, only that it works for me. Now if I can just remove that big monster from under my bed.....
ReplyDeleteYeah nice one Ken, Rick: both inner and outer are true whatever the current ideology. If it's said to be mainly inner, then that's because there's a whole lot of cheating going on! (:
ReplyDeleteKen (and Jakbob) Please note that I do not deny the outer is important. It is just that, I feel, as we evolve, we find it much less important than dealing with the inner conflicts (that actual can inadverdantly cause adversity and drama, that need not exist if we have purged them first. Our society, our formal education, our workplace etc. has all been laid on the foundation of right vs wrong, black and white, etc etc. (and labeling it as such). That has turned out to be so wrong, hence the need to look within LONG before looking without; and that can take years if not decades; I am but in my infancy of doing so, and though I see and confront (like others) conflicts/adversity from without, by my changing my own innerself, I am able to (at times) change adversity to celebrated diversity.
ReplyDeleteAs always an insightful article Ken, Thought provoking I love how you always seek an answer from your readers. Other blogs always pontificate but not yours. I am currently the heroine in my own life and I cannot wait to see the outcome. Serveral months ago I faced the fear of change... took a step forward into the unknown. For the first time with eyes wide open facing all that I had feared... it's all unfolding before me now... work in progress. Kindest Thoughts Lee
ReplyDeleteThis was a thinker for me. It rang true in my heart and mind ken.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that our 3D contruct world seems to evolve around juxtaposition. A new mindset of uncertainty like two sides of the same coin does fly, but necessary. Again perhaps if we rely on our intuitive guidance and love from the heart and like one of my tweet friends said, the head will go along with it: Lead with heart and let an intuition be the guide, some times the head may not go along, but it will cathch up... =)
ReplyDeleteThanks Remy for your contribution to the question at hand. I agree that intuition can offer both insight and guidance in the midst of uncertainty. Head knowledge provides a piece of the map of course. Clearly there are other pieces of our consciousness that informs us. Intuition of course and instinct as well.
ReplyDeleteOur instincts have evolved over millions of years and are refined to notice minute details that support our survival, especially in challenging circumstances.
I believe that what we often refer to as "heartfelt" is actually an expression of our instinctive tools including our need for and desire to share our "beauty", create cooperation and protect our vulnerabilities.
Adversity comes in many forms and often has a time critical component. When the window for a response is narrow, our instinct can be our best friend.
I think we serve our broader purposes best when we use all of our faculties. Still, "lead with the heart and follow with the head" is a compelling and passionate position to take,
I believe we learned to turn adversity into a friend because being always at war is exhausting. A case of making lemonade with the lemons we were given I think. But what if instead of adversity and lemons we could have peaches and strawberries with cream and chocolate. What if we could learn from the diversity of love instead of adversity? What if "the golden nugget of transformation and personal power reclamation" came from just being more of who we really are, in Oneness, in diversity, without duality or adversity? Who would we be and what kind of daily reality would we experience?
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