The ARDS Foundation - Body, Mind, & Spirit

By Pastor Ian

Being in the “NOW” Moment!

The verdict is now in and the jury is split on its response. By a 2 – 1 majority we will have six more weeks of winter. In a sleepy northeastern Pennsylvania town known as Punxsutawney, Phil, the groundhog, (or is it Philomena?) forecast, rather sleepily I thought, six more weeks of winter. In Canada, the two weather gurus, Willie and Sam, (or should it be Wilomena and Samantha?), were deadlocked, and could not agree on the outcome. In Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia, Sam insisted that an early spring was sure to follow. Moments earlier, he had spotted his shadow on the ground confirming, as the old saying goes, that winter was almost ended. A two-hour flight to the west, in Ontario, lies a small rural town called Wiarton, whose claim to fame is its airfield, and a groundhog called Willie. Today, clad rather ostentatiously in his winter albino gear, he looked lively enough to attack a fresh lettuce, had one been available, yet chose to return to his winter quarters and sleep through what he proclaimed would be another six weeks of the white stuff. (Winter, to you southerners) A good story should have a beginning that catches your interest; a middle that holds you in its grasp, and an ending that leaves you with a lasting impression, one that will at least last until the next coffee. A ‘good' movie nowadays seems to require to begin with a couple in bed just finishing having made love; continue with multiple scenes of shocking violence, and end with the aftermath of divorce, or the threat to world peace now removed in a pyrotechnic display, the likes of which would send Guy Fox, or the marines, running for cover. The movie I am about to share with you has none of these things, so by rights should be a lemon, but it is not. It is the kind of movie that can be shown to all ages without fear of embarrassment and, as is my concern, it carries a life message for us all.For those living outside of the Americas , who did not see the movie Groundhog Day, here is a brief synopsis of events. A weather presenter and reporter, called Phil Connors, his producer Rita, and Larry his camera crew, are dispatched from WPBH Television, Channel 9, Pittsburgh to a sleepy northern town known as Punxsutawney, replete with its white clapboard buildings and boardwalks, to cover for the fourth year in succession, the annual event known as Groundhog Day. The following day, February 2nd., Phil's guest house alarm wakes him at 6.00 a.m. to the sounds of Sonny & Cher singing “I Got You Babe.” Shortly after, Phil and his crew make their way to the centre of town where a groundhog, also named Phil, is removed from his winter quarters by local worthies, and placed somewhat ceremoniously on the ground at sunup. Now comes the moment of truth. As the old saying goes: If our furry weather-person sees his shadow on the ground, we can expect 6 weeks more winter. If no shadow is seen, we can expect an early spring. Phil (the groundhog) sees his shadow and makes his prediction through the mouth of the town mayor. Clever stuff!  Phil and the crew prepare to return to Pittsburgh having covered the event with some very uninspired reporting, but are trapped in Punxsutawney by a winter blizzard. The next morning, Phil's alarm wakes him at 6.00 a.m., again to the sounds of “I Got You Babe,” and the day unfolds in precisely the same way as the previous day. Phil is caught in some kind of a time warp in which he is destined to repeat the activities of the previous ‘Groundhog Day' on each of the following days, apparently, ad-infinitum. His frustrations mount, as he is unable to do anything to alter the course of events. Our big-time weather reporter becomes more and more belligerent; more and more rude with those persons with whom he comes into contact until, finally, something snaps within him. Living life under such a deep depression is no picnic, and Phil is destined for some serious health problems if it had not been for the arrival of an ‘Aha!' A turning point. It was Rabbie Burns who said: “O wad someone the gift tae gie us, to see ourselves as ithers see us!” This roughly translated means: (If only someone could give us the gift to see ourselves as other people see us. (a terrifying thought!) Suddenly, it seems, Phil sees himself as others see him, and he does not like the image that growls back at him. The depression he feels is real enough, and this is supported by feelings of negative worth and dissatisfaction about the course of his life and career. He sees a middle-aged weather reporter who takes no pleasure in his work, and extracts his frustrations and vengeance on those he meets. Perhaps his greatest fear is that he sees no hope for himself in the future, sees no ray of sunshine, and appears to be condemned to walk the same walk, and talk the same talk forever. In the midst of this crushing depression, Phil suddenly sees the rainbow in the skies of his life. Instantly he realizes that, if he so chooses, he is master of his own life, and is empowered to change its direction. He initially sets out to satisfy his own ego, and fails miserably in the process as he tries to win over Rita, his producer, in a very inauthentic display of affection. But there is a whole lot more to Phil's dilemma than these words might suggest. Rather than just making changes that allow him to retain his selfish, self-serving attitude, he discovers that his salvation will come from being a light in the world for others. The movie continues with Phil finally accepting being trapped in the time warp. In fact he embraces the opportunities it offers to him, and sets about his day with renewed vigor, determined to right the wrongs of the past; determined to do some of the things that deep down he wished he had done many years previously. He quickly develops literary awareness and a love of poetry. He learns piano, first aid, and a host of other talents, which he then uses to help others. Now we are unlikely to find ourselves in a time warp in which each and every day is exactly the same, or are we? It seems to me that at one stage of my life I was in exactly that situation, although I did not recognize it as such. My alarm would waken me at 5.45 a.m. (although not to the sounds of: ‘I Got You Babe') and I would be driving out of the English village we called home, at 6.15 a.m., my CB radio mic' glued to my hand as I called ahead to establish the road conditions for the next 100 miles of my life. A sandwich picked up at a “greasy spoon' restaurant; a coffee in my office, and I would be found ‘relaxing,' my nerves frayed from driving at speeds of up to 100 mph, having threaded my vehicle unscathed through the thousand trucks I had overtaken. I was safely ensconced in my swivel chair at 8.15 a.m. (on a good morning) waiting for my first employee to show up. The rest of the day passed with the usual meetings, visitors, decisions, and formation of future travel plans that would remove me from my family for days at a time. Try substituting the word ROUTINE for ‘Time Warp,' and I think you will agree, we are all caught up in our own unique circumstances that we lovingly call ‘work.' The message for our lives that Phil Connors brings to us is, that it's how we view our circumstances that matter, make that RE-view… Yes, we may appear to have the short end of the stick; yes, we may justify our actions by claiming the importance of them, however, until we really challenge the value and honesty of what we are doing with our lives, there will always be a monkey on our backs.

The questions we need to be asking ourselves are ones like:

You know, the gym or fitness salon that provides an important component to our well-being is of itself, no substitute for peace of mind. The questions remain, no matter how many lbs. I manage to press, or squats I can accomplish. Like Phil Connors, if I am truthful with myself, I need to be able to answer this question honestly: “Is my life going to be totally focused on me (like the soaps would have us believe is normal) or: Am I able to become a better person myself AND empower others to be the best that they can be?” Am I able to become a better person myself AND empower others to be the best that they can be?” Post ARDS, or other traumatic event, be it illness, loss, or otherwise, it might seem impossible not to harbour, at the very least, ambivalence towards life. Yet if we care to work at it; if we care to stop ourselves asking the “Why?” questions, and move on into what Dr Robert Schuller would call, serious ‘ Possibility Thinking ,' we can find and paint a new rainbow for our lives. The colors we use will be different from previous ones, but they will be ours to select and empower, and move us on with this wonderful journey we call “Life.”  Our movie ends as all good movies should. The woman gets her man, or was it the man gets his woman. No matter! Phil's newly developed empathy for others profoundly affects him. We have a new and likeable person who comes out of the other end of his unique experience; a person being the very best that he can be, and living each day, one day at a time. He has learned to be in the NOW moment. No matter what happens tomorrow, and for the rest of his life, he is happy now!

What about YOUR movie of life?

Pastor Ian.

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