The Arrow of Truth

By

Ryan Wheeler

February 23, 2017

As anyone who has been part of a dissolved marriage can attest: Divorce is exceptionally hard. The emotional and financial toll can strain even the most iron-strong of characters to the point of fracture. Divorce is akin to the destruction of a skyscraper: years to build and moments to obliterate into ruin & debris. Verily, no one is immune to the fallout including children, family, friends, acquaintances and coworkers.

This experience has taken me on an emotional rollercoaster like no other. I left to save my shriveling spirit and renew the gray lifeless soil eroding my soul. In the change I have been reborn and discovered more truths about myself, life and the universe  than I can communicate. As Khalil Gibran said in The Prophet, “Your Joy is your sorrow unmasked...The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.”

With clear, hopeful eyes I see the light and hope in the world. Looking for signs like a Shakespearean soothsayer is part of my new vision. Recently, while writing poetry near a rippling water’s edge I observed the sun blazing behind a gauzy thick cloud. With its fire safely contained behind the cumulous cover, I watched the slow symphony of celestial movement. Patience and peace quelled my questing mind as I appreciated the tome of truth transpiring before my eyes. As the cloud slid away from the sun a single ray of sunlight lit upon the water and began coursing toward my resting spot. The light grew in length and narrowed to a piercing point while wending its way across the water. I watched in rapt awe at this flaming arrow-tip gliding directly at my position of repose. In this moment, I gained an understanding and reassurance that I had been desperately needing:

Yes, I am on the right path. Rediscovering my own luminous self. Leaner, humbled, and moving in the right direction. I am becoming me once again.

Accepting that the most difficult choices in life can yield the most rewarding results is paramount to personal growth. Routines and self-care have become important components of my once chaotic and neglected life. Mindfulness is a daily practice as I try to live and love intentionally.

Through these trials I have improved in nearly every way and emerged humbled, a bit wiser and possessing the ability to see the sunshine through the clouds.