Endings

All week, I’ve been contemplating the idea of endings, of bringing something to completion with grace and dignity. My Ruby Slippers blog, for which the final discussion circle was yesterday evening. An offering from Third Space, my coaching school, called Turning Towards One Another, which was born out of Covid and has now reached its natural conclusion. A client relationship that has run its course. Even – and I know this is sensitive – the lives of well-loved elderly relatives.

So often, we have a natural inclination in life to want to keep things going. Our inherent fear of death expands beyond physical death to the death of anything, whether that is an idea, a blog, a community, or a business offering. And yet, death is a natural, and necessary, part of life. Can you imagine what the world would be like if nothing ever died (literally or metaphorically)?

There is a principle in systemic intelligence, a new field that I’ve been studying, that everything must have a purpose. But not an internally driven purpose as it is often defined in the business world these days (what is my passion, my reason for existence?), but an externally informed purpose that considers our interconnectedness with others (what is my community / broader society / the world asking for from me?). When that purpose has been fulfilled or is no longer relevant, the time has come to either redefine the purpose of the offering, team, or business, or bring it a graceful close, taking the time to honour its contribution before releasing it.

I love this week’s poem by Grace Butcher for its reminder that we can learn so much about the cycles of death and rebirth from trees. Trees die, to an extent, every winter as if it was the most ordinary thing in the world. I wonder if they have any knowledge that they will (hopefully) return in the spring. The more we can gracefully accept the cycle of death and rebirth when it comes to our ideas, business offerings, and communities, the more comfortable we can become with honouring what has fully served its purpose and letting it go, so that something new can grow in its place.

About Friday Pauses

We can all sense how a lack of presence in our daily life affects the quality of our relationships, our ability to form real connections – and yet we struggle to set aside distractions. In my Friday Pauses, I want to encourage us all to do just that – pause for a moment and feel what it’s like to be present by reading a poem.

If you’re new to Friday Pause, here’s what I suggest:

• Minimize or close other screens.
• Put your phone on silent.
• Close your eyes and take a full breath in…and out. Maybe count to four on the inhale and six on the exhale.
• Read the poem below – out loud, if you can. It will slow you down and help you feel the words more.
• Take another deep breath in…and out.
• Resume your day.