Transcendence

Transcendence is a phenomenon that’s rare, beautiful and mysterious. I had the pleasure of personally witnessing a client of mine come to a place of deep peace. Witnessing this transformation gave me the opportunity to see it from an outsider’s perspective for the first time.
She was willing to give it all up for him, to sacrifice everything for the chance to be with him, to love him, and to live her life with him. He was her ultimate; tall, dark, and handsome. He was powerful and knew how to treat her like an elegant and sensuous woman.
She felt full and free with him.
Their path was not entirely traditional. Some may even say it was hurtful and destructive, but their love was absolutely true. She was a mother of five, married to a catholic man with very traditional catholic views. She found herself repressed and controlled by structures and forces that were not her own.
Their love affair was somewhat cliché of that era. He was a successful businessman, and she was the beautiful secretary. However it happened, the affair turned into a deep and passionate love that burns within her to this day.
He retired a few years after they were married.
The children from their previous lives were all grown.
They lived eight charmed years before the diagnosis.
It was something that didn’t fit into their plans.
It was almost an insult.
Cancer?!
He was powerful and vivacious.
They knew this was going to be beaten.
They vacillated between disbelief and utter dismay.
They tried to continue to live their charmed life of dinners and travels, but his treatments started to get in the way.
They both knew this would be short lived and he would soon be on the path to recovery.
It didn’t happen.
He continued to be beaten down.
The cancer was consuming him.
He was losing.
She was succumbing to the stress.
The dread was an ever-present weight she was having a harder and harder time shouldering.
He was everything to her.
All of her eggs were in that one basket.
I watched this whole thing play out. Every six weeks she was in to see me and would sit in my chair for two hours. The conversation was about food. It was the last thing she felt she had control over. Their diet was clean, organic, and meticulously planned. The conversation ultimately turned toward the spiritual. She was trying to understand what it was that she believed.
I guess that was my role; to listen, to reflect, to witness. I guess, more than anything, to provide support and a sanctuary for her to feel safe and feel beautiful.
Anything other than that, penetrating dread.
He ultimately succumbed to his demise before his death.
He tried to prepare her for what lay ahead.
There was plenty of money.
He loved her so much that it was his sincere hope that she would find love again. He wanted to give her permission, to set her free.
His affairs were completely in order. There was nothing left for her to do.
In losing him, she lost everything.
It’s really that simple.
Her sun rose and set with him.
Her world was his.
He was the air that filled her lungs.
And then he was gone.
I don’t know for sure when the transcendence occurred for her. It was right around the time of his death. The first time I saw her after his death, it was clear that she had let go and I don’t mean this in a bad way. She’d surrendered; her entire essence was pure peace. It’s hard to explain what changed from a physical perspective, but she literally glowed. Her eyes were crystal clear, her skin shone, her hair gleamed, her spirit was unencumbered.
She was it.
She was that thing… that mystical thing that we all talk about, worship, and most misunderstand.
I knew within seconds of seeing her what had happened. It took a little while for her to feel free enough to tell me, but when she did, my emotions overwhelmed me.
The heat and the tears were immediate.
The profound bliss consumed my entire being.