According to a book that I am reading The Second Half of Life by Angeles Arrien, many traditional societies believe that the four rivers of life sustain and support us and connect us to our natural gifts. If we fail to stay connected to these rivers, we succumb to "walking the procession of the living dead" and begin to experience soul loss, depression, and stagnation. Much of what I write in this post are excerpts from the book itself.
The metaphor of rivers appeals to me because I am a kayaker of rivers. I began canoeing and then kayaking rivers in my late 30s and early 40s when I was first getting out of my troubled marriage. The rivers and mountains gave me strength and wisdom and serenity and spirituality.
Tradition has it that the four rivers of life are the rivers of inspiration, challenge, surprise, and love.
How do we stay connected to these four rivers? What specific things do we do to keep these rivers balanced and flowing throughout our lives? What do we do to feed and clean these rivers so that they won't stagnant or dry up?
The river of inspiration reveals where we are in touch with our creative fire and our life dream. As long as we can still be inspired, we know that we are alive, refusing to join the procession of the living dead.
For me, inspiration and creativity come is several forms: writing, art (painting), and as of this coming Monday, I am beginning a quilting class! I will always look for ways to create art, whether in a DIY project here at home or in taking a workshop or a class. And always, I will write.
The second river, the river of challenge calls us to stretch and grow beyond what is knowable or familiar. This river always asks us to move past any fixed notion of what we can do. If we are willing to be challenged, to become explorers again, despair, loneliness, boredom, and indifference cannot come into our lives. This reminds me of Merlyn telling the young Wart (King Arthur) that "the best thing for being sad is to learn something."
Besides learning something new and trying new things like quilting, when I think of the river of challenge in my life, I think of traveling to new places. This year I want to travel to the Grand Tetons in Jackson, Wyoming, and on to Yellowstone (I love national parks!) and then perhaps to Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota.
(Since my retirement, I have taken a spring trip in 2010 with friends to San Francisco and Yosemite [Wow!] Then in the autumn 2011, I took a solo trip to New England, mostly to see the fall foliage and all of the places that I had taught about in American literature, such as Concord and Walden Pond, and to see Acadia National Park [again Wow!] in Maine. I travel often to NC to kayak, and I love the mountains and rivers, but it's time for another "big" trip! This time I believe that I will go on a tour of Wyoming.)
The third river of life, the river of surprise keeps us fluid and flexible and requires us to open to options and possibilities we may not have considered. The Inuits have a saying about it: "There are two plans for everyday, my plan and the Mystery's plan." This river keeps us curious, flexible, and trusting, rather than rigid or controlling. It shows us where our attachments repress the natural flow of creativity and energy and motivation.
Since I have been retired, this river has really been flowing more strongly than ever in my life. I wish that I had been more open to this river of surprise when I was still teaching, and especially early in my career. Back then, I felt that I always needed to be in control of myself, and of course, of my students and of what material we "covered" in the classroom. Back then, I generally did not like surprises! But now, I feel that I have the precious gift of time (which I always had) to change my mind or heart and follow my bliss--wherever it may lead me. Alice Walker tells us to "live frugally on surprise."
The fourth river, the river of love shows us where we are touched and moved by life's experiences. Humor, joy, laughter, and love are considered medicines for the heart by some indigenous peoples. This river indicates that the work and service we love can make us happy. Teaching high school English for several decades definitely made me happy! Now I am transferring that love to my heart family and friends, to caring for my granddaughters, and to volunteering at Noah's Closet, a local clothing and housewares shop. Anywhere that I can love what I do and the people I am with! Kahlil Gibran reminds us of the value of service: "Work is love made visible."
I believe that I live best at the place where these four rivers of inspiration, challenge, surprise, and love intersect with one another. A place of stillness and presence. The rivers form a moving wheel in my life, a wheel of time, if you will, rolling on toward eternity.
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