You Live, You Learn...

I came across a song by Alanis Morissette that I hadn't heard in many years. The song is called, "You Learn, (Jagged Little Pill)" and it was very popular in the 90's. But as with many things in our lives, we revisit themes on deeper levels as we grow older.

Here are some of the lyrics-
I recommend biting off more then you can chew to anyone
I certainly do
I recommend sticking your foot in your mouth at any time
Feel free
 
Throw it down (the caution blocks you from the wind)
Hold it up (to the rays)
You wait and see when the smoke clears

You live, you learn
You love, you learn
You cry, you learn
You lose, you learn
You bleed, you learn
You scream, you learn

There is a very famous saying that goes, "live and learn" and isnt' that the truth? Perhaps for those of us perfectionists out there, we would rather just "know everything" without having to make mistakes and live through things, but that's not reality.

Here's another saying for you, "We cannot control the direction of the wind, but we can adjust our sails."

How often I find myself wanting to control the direction of the wind and what an utterly frustrating waste of time that is!

Perhaps I want to control the outcomes of situations, or other people's reactions and responses to things. Perhaps I want things to turn out the "right way" (aka- how I think things "should" turn out) or perhaps I just want to simply avoid suffering.

But all of these coping mechanisms are an illusion. They do not allow me to live the fullness of life. Jesus came that we might have life and have it to the full, not some artificially controlled mediocre existence.

So what this means is that we get to embrace everything that life brings. We get to embrace the joy and the sorrow, the triumphs and the failures. We get to embrace good days and bad days, the sun and rain for we need all of it to live a full life.

Suffering comes with the promise of Resurrection and opens our heart at deep levels.

So let us take the hand of Jesus and live.