As a kid, my pal was a tom-boy named Buffy. She was tough—in attitude and in acumen. She could beat the boys on the kick ball field as easily as in the math olympics. The older me realizes that I looked up to her but the younger me just wanted to be her. I wanted Buffy’s blond hair, her blue eyes, her sharp tongue and her fast legs. I even wanted her allergies. She was allergic…to everything, or so it seemed. Before the days of ubiquitous peanut allergies, lactose intolerance, and celiac disease, Buffy stood out as someone special—right down to her diet. As an eight year old I would have killed to have one of these allergies. It made her that much grander in my eyes.
Fast forward a few decades and I can view this with humor and with gratitude that I do not have allergies…until this year. The beautiful spring that is underway ushered in some heavy duty pollen. It comes every year, but this year it was brought right to my nose, eyes, and throat. I thought, So..this is what folks are talking about! I’ve got it and now I am ready for it to go, but not before I learn a thing or two.
First, I realize gratitude for how fortunate I have been—and still am—not to suffer from many seasonal or food specific allergies. Second, I realize that we are all probably allergic to something. If it’s not the pollen or ragweed, if it’s not the peanuts or shellfish, it is probably something a little deeper down. It might be something that resides when we resist without realizing or something that conjures up an uncomfortable feeling each time we are confronted by a particular situation.
The question is how do we deal with those things that appear seemingly adverse to our personal nature? We cannot always avoid them. Sure, the nuts and shellfish can be avoided…but we have to go outside in nature just as much as we have to go inside ourselves. We have to go inside to confront those issues which cause unease. It is not simple and it is not done all at once. It is done in increments. As I honor the season and appreciate all the beauty it provides, I understand now that there will be a little suffering. So too when I must address a situation that has made me upset. I can appreciate all the good and work through the discomfort. Getting passed the allergy means going through the unease, it means accepting but not giving up or giving into.
It is not a mystery that nature mimics life is so many realms for nature is life. It is our nature to be allergic to some things, but we also have the ability to appreciate and go on.