Architecture of Meaning

Cultivating Meaningful Engagement for the Highly Sensitive Person

Between the news about what is turning upside down and the reactions to this upending - from fear to radical doctrines of change - not only is the news more intense, but the messages of what to do to bring about change are at an all time fevered pitch. While the media brings you news of crises from all over the world, severe environmental crises are more frequent than ever before. The water is beginning to boil in the pot that is our life on earth.

What is the role of the sensitive in a time of increasing chaos? When each day there are more and more reasons for people to be frightened, overwhelmed and self absorbed, how does the sensitive respond? How, when you are more vulnerable and attuned to minor shifts and changes than others, do you manage the deluge of dramatic upheavals?

Flooding that leaves communities with piles of moldy and mildewing debris - everything toxic after being saturated by water, submerged. Every item which used to be the home, the decorations, the entertainment systems - now worthless piles of detritus with no way to dispose of it all.

While new age or spiritual doctrines encourage people to see beyond the material to what is essential - flood victims are jettisoned to that very reality. The caring of strangers, the gratitude that family and friends are safe - these essentials are the embedded experience. The nature of home, of belonging - these truths come home to the flood victim in a way that those who have not lost homes or communities can only imagine.

In a time where externalities demand more and more attention, it can seem counter-intuitive to focus inside. However, if the future holds more instability in weather (not less), then the requirement to resolve ancient wounds so that we may be neutral in present and demanding circumstances seems more pressing than ever. When the internal landscape lacks alignment, then the external causes of disequilibrium and stress become exponentially overwhelming.

Whether it is the meaning and value of a “no”, or the gift of rejection, family, school, work and cultural norms fail to assist us in appreciating the value of the no….

As children, if we grew up in a family or culture in which we were not seen or valued, we may have unknowingly adopted a false self. If we have a strong will, there are few ways for this persona to be penetrated. Often, the rejections are the chiropractic adjustment that force us to examine what we value, or what we have attached ourselves to, that may not be from a place of alignment. The more we slam our head against closed doors, the more likely we are to be willing to ask if that direction is our true path. The no’s and rejections may be the only path to our authentic self.

…While I do not begin to suggest that sensitives and visionaries know how climate change is going to play out, I would say that many sensitives and visionaries live with a sense of how large events will play out or come to pass that surpasses all logical explanation. In some ways it is as if they lack the filter that limits the ability of most people to see beyond the present….

If a pebble is dropped in the pond, it is as if the sensitive or visionary feels or sees as far out as the 100th ripple….As crises spread, deep change is mandatory. Someone aware of the ripples can be confused as to why it takes such crisis for most citizens to even begin to consider the need for change. This is part of the pain of carrying a capacity for vision - or for the awareness of the exponential.