The Profound Art of Being “Stuck”
Have you ever felt utterly stuck? Like you’re spinning your wheels in the mud, waiting for something, anything, to shift? If so, here’s a question that might crack open some insight:
“What am I refusing to choose?”
At its core, this question nudges us to confront a truth we often avoid: creation requires loss. In order to create something new, something else has to die. And yes, it can feel devastating, extremely so.
When we think about growth and transformation, we romanticize the “new beginning” part. What we tend to gloss over is the grief that accompanies it, the death of old identities, values, beliefs, and even ways of being.
If you’re stuck right now, ask yourself this:
What if “stuck” isn’t actually stuck? What if it’s a sacred pause, a state of witnessing what is leaving your life?
This reframing can be a game-changer. We live in a world obsessed with “progress,” where we’re constantly pressured to move forward, to produce, to prove our worth through action. But what if that pressure itself is the problem? What if our resistance to loss, the refusal to let old versions of ourselves die, is what keeps us spinning?
Let’s get metaphorical.
When I pulled The Hierophant card today, it reminded me of this exact process. Traditionally, The Hierophant is associated with authority, teaching, and structure, things that might feel heavy or patriarchal. But the symbols in the card, especially in the Thoth deck, offer a deeper wisdom about death and transformation.
- The Key: A tool that can both lock and unlock. What are you locking yourself into that no longer serves you? What would it feel like to unlock the door to something new?
- The Gesture of Benediction: A symbolic reassurance. Even as you face the “death” of an old self, all is well.
- The Nine-Rayed Crown: Nine is the number of completion—three cycles of three, symbolizing perfection. Death, in its own way, is perfect.
So, what if death is not the enemy?
Metaphorically speaking, our resistance to death, the loss of who we were, the identities we’ve constructed, the beliefs that once felt safe, creates the illusion of stuckness. But what if you embraced the perfection of this moment, just as it is?
Here’s the wild part: as soon as you acknowledge the perfection of a moment, it’s already gone. Dead. A new moment arises. And another. And another.
Are you really stuck, or are you resisting the flow of these continuous moments?
Or maybe, just maybe, you’re resisting the joy of it all.
Because let’s be honest, the flow of life, creation, and transformation is intense. It’s glorious. And sometimes it feels like too much. But what if that intensity isn’t something happening to you?
What if you are the intensity?
There’s no escaping it because it’s who you are: a brilliant, ever-evolving being, capable of holding the perfection of this moment and the next.
So here’s my invitation: let yourself surrender. Let the old die. Witness what’s leaving, honor it, and trust the process of what’s emerging.
Are you willing to release your resistance and choose the joy waiting for you on the other side of “stuck”?
Sending love,
Marina XO
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