While away in Byron Bay last week for the Embracing Health Detox Retreat, we enjoyed quite a few rough storms during the nights. One morning after a particularly strong storm, I was walking towards the shala when I saw a newly abandon cicada cast (the shell bit, actually called an exuvia upon further research!) on a leaf overhanging the path. See my picture below.
This got me thinking about timing. Here was this wild storm, and in the midst of that storm a cicada decided it was time to shed its exoskeleton. Couldn’t it have picked a quieter night? A leaf not so exposed to the elements? What about a sturdy tree trunk not 1 meter away from its precarious leaf? And the answer to that, I decided, was no. When it happens, it happens!
On retreats we have a lot of people ‘shedding their skin’, and the time and place for these changes can sometimes come as a surprise. Many people expect that they will go on a retreat to detoxify their bodies, cleanse the bowel, learn some health information and perhaps lose a bit of weight. What many people don’t realise, is that through the specialised detox program we have at the retreats, old habits, emotional pains and traumas, or ‘skins’ can be shed as well! Some will find that during a massage, one of our talented Ka Huna massage therapists unlocks emotions the recipient may not even know they still carry around. For others it might be in the breathwork, or perhaps the sound healing. It might be in a yoga class or in a naturopathic consultation, and yes, even in a colonic! But wherever it is, whenever it is, that little cicada shell reminds me that the timing is always perfect.
I know it can be a common trait for some (me absolutely!) to want to control the whens, whys and hows of a situation. Many people are not comfortable with situations they feel forced into. And this can be anything. It could be having to buy a new car before you were ready. Having to move house or change jobs, even little things like routines being disrupted can cause some people to feel uncomfortable. But what that little cicada helped to bring to my mind, is the fact that everything happens at exactly the right time, weather it feels right for you or not. There is a bigger picture in all things, and just because we are focused on the present, we forget that in 1 week, 1 month, 1 year or 10 years, that situation may just be a whole lot different than how it feels right now.
The next time you feel a big shift happening, a change that is unexpected or unwelcome, try to remember my little cicada and go with the flow. When it happens it happens, and just going with this shift can make the ride a whole lot easier for you in the long run. Gosh I love nature! Mother Nature is the best teacher around 🙂
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