Transform Pain or Transmit It

What is suggested here is a generational truth. Of the problems we know about now, those that have plagued us in previous generations, are destined to haunt us in future generations if we don’t do something now about them.

“If we do not transform our pain we will most assuredly transmit it.”

~Richard Rohr

As a graphic national illustration we look to the Rwandan genocide of 1994, where one million Tutsis were massacred over a 100-day time period. Two previous genocides occurred in similar circumstances, each a generation beforehand, in 1973, and previously in 1959. After each genocide there was the pledge made—“Never again.” But, it did indeed occur again. And, more pertinently, will it happen again?

As the personal illustration this pattern holds, for individuals and families. If we would wish to rectify the problems we have known, annihilating the possibility of their repeat, we must wrangle with the pain and transform it beyond the current manifestation.

This encapsulates all our addictions, dependencies, areas of neglect, incidences of trauma, and abuses, etc.

Tackling Our Pain

There are so many things that we should want to transform and rectify; and not leave as is, so they might be transmitted to those even yet unborn, through us.

This has direct relevance to our diseases like alcoholism, and traumas like sexual abuse. There are a great many mental and emotional ills that we might tackle head-on.

It goes further into our developmental pain, and our lack of tenacity for the spiritual conquest. Anything that appears as a threat to our spiritual growth could be in sight.

The quote above is relevant to every single person. We all have our pains which we must transform, otherwise we’re faced with transmitting the effects of our pain, even the pains themselves, through communicability, to the next generation, and into generations to come.

The Spirit Of Transformation

We, truly, have a great deal of power over our destinies. We can identify and work on any work we wish to accomplish. Instead of building great material wealth, for instance, we could work at developing our spiritual wealth. There is great wisdom in that.

The spirit of transformation is freely available to all humankind, but we must want it, and to receive it we must live truthfully. That takes courage and sacrifice, and, no less, humility.

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We have this time right now as a time to transform our pain into something useful. It’s our time and our opportunity. If we don’t transform our pain we will transmit it onward, into the next generation. We can fix it now, beginning today.

© 2012 S. J. Wickham.