David Whyte, in his book Consolations, equates crisis to the “dark night of the soul.”
This dark night could be more accurately described as the meeting of two immense storm fronts, the squally vulnerable edge between what overwhelms human beings from the inside and what overpowers them from the outside.
While this is one kind of personal crisis, I needed a simpler definition to chew on. This was handed to me by centenarian philosopher Grace Lee Boggs through an On Being podcast. She said she learned from her father that “crisis is both a danger and an opportunity.” Boggs was speaking of the crisis in her hometown of Detroit, Michigan, where populations have been dwindling and buildings abandoned. Those who remain are slowly forming a new identity for this one time automobile city.
The refugee crisis happening right now in Europe is a classic example of where danger and opportunity go hand in hand, although these refugees are heartbreakingly experiencing more danger than opportunity.
To me, crisis occurs at a breaking point. There is life before and then the point where it can no longer go on as before. There is no choice but to cross over into a new life and all the uncertainty that entails. On the other side is both danger and opportunity. Sometimes, the breaking point is unexpected, such as a job loss, an illness, an accident, or the loss of a relationship. And sometimes we willingly initiate it through leaving a job or relationship or standing up for ourselves in a brand new way.
A crisis has the power to shatter our illusions, to reveal that in this impermanent world, there really is no ground to stand on, nothing we can hold on to. ~ Tara Brach, True Refuge
Yet, this moment of surrender can sometimes lead to opportunities never before imagined. That is the hope.
** Books mentioned have Amazon or Bookshop affiliate links, meaning I make a few cents if you purchase through my link. I only recommend books that I’ve read.