Life Lesson #463 ~ In the Belly of the Whale

 

“Sometimes in the waves of change we find our true direction.” ~ Unknown 

 

We’ve all heard the story of Jonah. He ran from God and ended up in the belly of a whale. Not exactly the posh uptown condo one might daydream about, right? Sounds more like a slippery, sloppy, messy and muddy ordeal to be honest. If not damp, mucky and downright terrifying to boot. I don’t know about you but the idea of being swallowed whole by anything is alarming. No less by a monstrous whale with jagged teeth. Yet, despite our best efforts, we all end up inside the belly of a whale at some time or another. 

 

Why? Because we run. Fear takes the wheel and steers us right into the mouth of an angry, hungry whale. What was it Herman Melville said? Oh yes. “Ignorance is the parent of fear.” He sure had that right. I mean by the time regret catches up with us, we’re the proud parents, if not grandparents of a hopping mad, agitated litter of feral changelings we don’t recognize.  

 

Nope, we’re not happy, but what does that matter? We might as well give into our pride, right? Better to be wrong until we feel right, huh? Pretty much by the time we wake up in Monstro’s belly there’s no doubt we’ve lost control of whatever situation we thought we had control of anyway. At this point everything has gone awry. We’ve been swallowed up, whole. Rightly thrown around like rag dolls just before being tossed about like a ship on the ocean. And God help us if there’s two or more frenzied whales on the warpath, passing us around like a bottle of crown. 

 

Let’s be plain. Pride is one thing. It can be good, in small amounts. Ego on the other hand is another story. Especially in large doses. Why? It’s lethal. But that’s the thing about pride and ego, isn't it? Even if we’re right or we’re wrong it corrodes our dignity. Pride simply gets in the way, keeping us from those we love. Pride clouds our judgment. Pushes us to judge and punish. Pride and ego can’t see past their own nose. Nor can they listen. Both lack ears to hear or forgiveness to listen. Together they encourage us to make bad choices, waste time and fill our hearts with unnecessary hatred. Ego can’t stop himself. And Pride, she can’t let go. James Clear says it best. “Once pride gets involved, you’ll fight tooth and nail to maintain your habits.” Which means you’ll end up stuck in the belly of the whale for a long time if you’re not willing to let go of your pride, ego and fear.  

 

My question is who saw Monstro lurking in the distance? I sure didn’t. Seriously, what happened? Where did all our best laid plans go? Ahh! Ego got in the way. Pride stumbled in and stole the show. Took us way off course and drove us straight into the belly of a whale. Friendships wiped out. Family destroyed. Relationships incinerated. Everything floated out to sea with ego and pride, right before getting swallowed up by Monstro.  

 

Unfortunately, here you are. Plunged into the belly of a whale. Stuck on a rotted makeshift boat, half hardily floating around inside the smelly, putrid, not so fantastic digestive juices of a whale’s belly. I don’t know about you but a staycation at Monstro’s Belly Side Inn has never made my bucket list. Just sayin’. But who knows? Maybe a furlough at Monstro’s is just the ticket for some. For me though that’s a hard pass. Let’s just say decaying, rotting, smelly old bones, and festering broken, tainted dreams isn’t my idea of a good time. 

 

So, what will it be? There’s two options. One you can stay put, rot and run deeper into the belly of the whale. Or two, we can both say I love you. Say I’m sorry. Take steps to resolve the hurt. Try and talk. Hasn’t it been said, “Even in the belly of the whale there was hope.” You know why? Because there is always hope. After all, Jonah found his way out. And you can too. But you gotta want it. 

 

Whether you believe the Bible is a book of made-up stories or not, the story of Jonah still holds a significant life lesson for the modern age. Personal responsibility is part of the process. Finding our way to the surface and out of the whale's belly takes humility. Grace, when given, will completely change your direction. Until then, we’ll keep the light on. And when you’re ready, love will lead you home.

 

“When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.” ~ Harriet Beecher Stowe 

 

~Merida Grace