When Things Fall Apart Heart Advice for Difficult Times

There's this book I love and I go back to it called Comfortable with Uncertainty. It's by the Buddhist teacher Pema Chdrn, who has also written really, really, really wellknown beloved books like When Things Fall Apart and Welcoming the Unwelcome.

It's like when things fall apart. Comfortable with uncertainty. How we live is how we die. But, you know, a different kind of freedom. Welcoming the unwelcome.

I became a Buddhist because I hated my husband. That's not something you hear every day, but Buddhist nun and author of When Things Fall Apart, Pema Chodron, is only kind of kidding.

I read a lot of Pema Chodron. She's this Buddhist nun.

I am lovable. I am good enough.

One of the things I learned from Pema Chodron that was the most... not that I know her... from her books. From her books and her material.

One of the things I learned from Pema Chodron...

Listen, that's exactly where I feel. By the way, Glennon and Abby, when people found out that you, they were like, wait, you're friends with them?

She gave me two books. She gave me "Let Your Life Speak" by Parker Palmer. "When things fall apart" by Pema Chdrn and "Faith," the Sharon Salzburg.

That book in particular, it's the chapter called hopelessness and death.

When Things Fall Apart, welcoming the unwelcome and the wisdom of no escape.

So the book titles somewhat reflect that and encouragement to work with your heart and mind so that you could be sort of steady and able to be of benefit in these times.

I suspect people listening to this are thinking to themselves in all caps, how do I welcome the unwelcome? How do I become comfortable with uncertainty?

I was thinking it's like you've been trying to prepare us for this for decades.

Yeah, so the book titles somewhat reflect that and encouragement to work with your heart and mind so that you could be sort of steady and able to be of benefit in these times.

Her books include When Things Fall Apart. That's one of her best-selling books.

She gave me Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer. When things fall apart by Pemma Children and Faith, the Sharon Salisburg.

That book in particular, it's the chapter called hopelessness and death. Fun reading. Fun reading.

All things fall apart all the time. All things. Things fall apart when things fall apart.

Her books include When Things Fall Apart. That's one of her best-selling books.

She gave me Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer. When things fall apart by Pemma Children and Faith, the Sharon Salisberg.

And I read those books and cried through every page.

That book in particular, it's the chapter called hopelessness and death.

She starts teaching on the nature of impermanence, right? All things fall apart.

He only gets to go outside for 30 minutes a day and only on weekdays. And just to add a little salt to the wound, while he's held in jail, he gets fired from Nissan and Mitsubishi. And then months later, he resigns from Renault.

Things falling apart is a kind of testing and also a kind of healing. We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don't really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. And they come together again and fall apart again. It's just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen. Room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy.

The journey goes down, not up. It's as if the mountain pointed downward, pointed toward the center of the earth instead of reaching into the sky. Instead of transcending the suffering of all creatures, we move toward turbulence and doubt. We jump into it. We slide into it. We tiptoe into it at our own pace, without speed or aggression. We move down and down and down. With us move millions of others, our companions, an awakening from fear. At the bottom we discover water. Right down there in the thick of things, we discover the love that will not die.

If we're willing to give up hope that insecurity and pain can be exterminated, then we can have the courage to relax with the groundlessness of our situation. This is the first step on the path.

Suffering begins to dissolve when we can question the belief or the hope that there's anywhere to hide.

Spiritual awakening is frequently described as a journey to the top of a mountain. We leave our attachments and our worldliness behind and slowly make our way to the top. At the peak, we have transcended all pain. The only problem with this metaphor is that we leave all the others behind. Our drunken brother, our schizophrenic sister, our tormented animals and friends. Their suffering continues, unrelieved by our personal escape. In the process of discovering bodhicitta, the journey goes down, not up.

Embarking on the spiritual journey is like getting into a very small boat and setting out on the ocean to search for unknown lands. With wholehearted practice comes inspiration, but sooner or later we will also encounter fear. For all we know when we get to the horizon, we are going to drop off the edge of the world.

Turning your mind towards the Dharma does not bring security or confirmation. Turning your mind toward the Dharma does not bring any ground to stand on. In fact when your mind turns toward the Dharma you fearlessly turn away from the path of the Dharma.

What may appear to be an arrow or a sword, we can actually experience as a flower.

In difficult times it is only bodhicitta that heals. When inspiration has become hidden, when we feel ready to give up, this is the time when healing can be found in the tenderness of pain itself.

Things falling apart is a kind of testing and also a kind of healing. We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don't really get solved. They come together and they fall apart.