Going with the flow – for some while I’ve tried to live by this. Sometimes it’s been a struggle. Having things follow a set pattern has been a comfort, especially for a trauma survivor. It’s enabled me to plan my day, and be safe. When something happens at work or life, that I didn’t fit the pattern so to speak, I might get angry, resentful, feel stressed, and in some cases go into a panic. Any of you know that feeling?

Last night I had another dream where a pattern was disrupted. The setting of the dream, as is often the case, is a school: two classes, sudden changes in schedules, resulting in two conflicting exams.

When I came semi-awake, I thought, what the hell?; why am I having this dream again? I’m not getting any new information. Then, and there, I complained to my guides about the need for this.

Settling back to sleep, the dream continued, and this time, ended with a message – I asked one teacher for what I needed, and he proposed that I do a project instead.

Suddenly, another layer of onion got peeled and with it came two important pieces of wisdom.

• First, and building on my “let the moment take the lead” message, when something suddenly changes and throws plans into disarray, as much as possible, try not to react with anger, stress, or panic. Just breathe. In fact, take repeated, deep breathes into your body, especially to the areas of your body where your reaction centers. For me, that’s my gut.
• Second, after taking the time to center and calm yourself, simply ask for what you need to adapt to the change.

With the last two months at my job, I have an opportunity to apply both of these, as unexpected changes arise regularly. Oddly, enough, I’m looking forward to it.

Another onion layer peeled – what a relief.