Wait... you don't go in the door?
Finding the Real Meaning of Redirection
Standing at the Gate
We are told that when one door closes, another door opens. I have a strong visual in my mind from my childhood. I see St. Peter standing outside the pearly gates at his podium with his list and he looks up at me over his reading glasses and says, “Sorry. Your name’s not on this list. You didn’t make the cut.” As I walk off, I heard someone say, “Here…come HERE!” I look over and it was the blessed Virgin Mary. (How strange to be labeled by your sexual state… where did THAT come from?) She calls me over to a window and says, “You belong here. Come this way.” And I climb in the window.
(This must be from some homily one of the priests gave when I was quite young and it obviously made a huge impression on me. When the door is closed, try the windows. There’s a way.)
Is this my Window?
What is left out of this story is the timeline. One door closes and it can be a LONG time before you find the open door. Like the waiting period after you receive a college rejection before you get an acceptance that is acceptable. Or you get divorced and it’s a long time before you find a new mate. Or you’re unemployed looking for work, and nothing comes through.
"The quagmire of in-between is where life is lived."
Yes, when one door closes, another will open… eventually. But what no one talks about is the long haul (hall) between doors. The space between rejection and acceptance. It seems like it can last for ages. But then when it is over, everything is fine again. The pain or trauma of the wait subsides.
But does it ever really go away? Do you have that naive faith that everything will work out in the end and if it hasn’t worked out, it isn’t the end?
It’s hard to keep going when you hit a lot of walls.
Maybe that’s something we learn from sports. You can lose a lot of games, and still qualify for the finals. (Go Valkaries!)
But the trek there is painful…
Finding an Alternate Path
How do you keep going when the doors keep closing? Often you don’t have another choice. If you need another job, you’ve got to keep searching, trying different strategies, maybe even compromising a bit.
That is what that homily was teaching us… if you keep looking, eventually you will find a way in. You have to have faith in yourself, know your own value and worth. Or maybe the real test is to see if you are brave enough to go in through the window. A test to see what you’re made of.
The hallway, the long haul, is where the lessons are learned. Where your tenacity kicks in. Where you show what you’re made of. The long hall? It’s the test. Do you have what it takes to keep going in the face of rejection? Will you stick it out waiting for the right thing to show up?
The quagmire of in-between is where life is lived.
St. Peter is offering you a gift. The gift of time to figure out the lesson you are in this hallway to learn. Now is your time to show what you are truly made of.
So when the right thing shows up, you will be ready.
Tarot Pull
Card of the Day: Judgement
When I pulled a card for this piece, I drew Judgement — the card of awakening, of being called to step forward into a new life. It reminds me that even when the door seems closed, the call is still sounding. You’re already chosen. You just have to answer.
The trick is to pay attention to the signs and signals along the way so you know you’re on the right path.
