June 2011: The Void
Last month I mentioned The Void. I’m fairly confident that most of us are familiar with our own Voids. Mine seems to take on the shape, colour, and characteristics of an astronomical Black Hole. For others, it might appear as a barren wasteland or a stagnant lagoon. At any rate, it is that unseen force that seems to suck the life right out of us, drain us dry, paint life with a hopeless brush, stagnate rather than stimulate. Life may seem empty and pointless. We tend to want to fill that void or aerate that wilderness in order not to feel the vastness, the emptiness, the aridness, the stagnation.
Since then, it has come to my attention that The Void may not be a vacuous Black Hole after all. I have already mentioned that we can accept The Void and choose not to fill it. My journey now takes that conclusion one step (or spiral) further—or in another direction depending on how your journey make look. Journeys tend not to be linear progressions.
The word we are looking for is Spaciousness. Once I have accepted and allow for the existence of The Void, it provides an opportunity to look at it from another angle. From this new vantage point, the void appears expansive, limitless, open to infinite possibilities. Does this make you think of any other time in history when seemingly nothing begat something? For the person who shared this idea of spaciousness with me, it reminded him of God creating something out of nothing. I like that association. Even for those who hold to the Big Bang Theory—something still came out of nothing. Viewing the ‘negative space’ of my existence as opportunity-for-explosion is rather exciting—and hopeful—don’t you think?
There may yet come something out of my nothing. It may be influenced by a Creative Presence or self-combustion. Either way, change is inevitable. My Void or Spaciousness will not look or feel the same. Reminds me of art class and learning the value of ‘negative space’—and how good use of negative space enhances the focal point rather than detracts from it. That’s what I want for my ‘negative space’—for it to enhance what is already taking shape or forming in the innermost of my being. Who knows what will burst forth next?
What might be brewing or fomenting in the hidden regions of your being? Any explosions worth mentioning? Might be a good idea not to mess with it. No use filling that emptiness with stuff that might inhibit a process already underway. Rather, take a step back and appreciate the view. That Black Hole might turn out to be a galaxy of stars sparkling in a deep night sky.