The untimely death of Whitney Houston got me thinking about how so many of us are living what can only be called the addicted life. This beautiful image is from her own website of whitneyhouston.com. In this image you can easily see her luminesence and the radiance that made her such a beloved star.
Aren’t most of us fortunate that we will never have to endure the worship of our fellow beings? How does any one person believe herself worthy of such adoration not to mention the heavy burden of expectations she must have felt. Watching some of the memorial service this weekend I was struck by the lively little girl and then teenage Whitney – just a normal, much loved child, with an incredible gift. Even the most loving family would struggle to prepare a child for the kind of fame that came Whitney’s way at such a young age. It would be a struggle at any age.
She is not that different from you and me. I have struggled with my addictive nature throughout my life as I would assume many of you have as well. Addiction takes us away from the process of feeling the reality of our emotions and tamps down the anxiety and distress that lie just beneath the surface. And the only way out is a process of healing that involves daily presence and action to shift addictive behaviors in new directions.
It’s easy to judge someone you don’t know – easy to say “she had all that money and everything she could ever have wanted – if that were me, I’d be happy.” In Whitney we have a reminder once again that happiness comes from someplace deep inside – from not only a connection to Divine source but also to a connection to our own self-love. And self-love remains the great difficulty in life and in society.
I have been reminded in the last few weeks of one of my favorite quotes and a deep, deep truth about life. From the Persian Poet Rumi we have the instruction for how to find that happiness within:
“Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it.”
We need our addictions to man the barriers protecting our own vulnerable hearts. So as you let go of an addiction or addictive pattern of behaving or relating to others, you begin to open the heart and heal.
And you find you are so much more than you ever thought possible.
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As always you give me much to ponder, as well as a comfort that comes with your wise word. Thanks.
This is a lot to think about for me – how can I “let go of…an addictive pattern of behaving or relating to others” this is what I am struggling to learn. I have never thought of having barriers around my heart but as I read this, it rings so true and clear for me. Thank you for your wisdom.