One of the passages in the Bible that is most interesting to me is the fact that during the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah as Lot’s wife was fleeing the city she looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt.  There are many aspects of this story that can be debated, such as the hypothesis that the “burning sulfur” emitted when the cities were burning is actually evidence that a nuclear strike rather than God’s Wrath caused the destruction of the cities, and that ancient Sumerian translations of the pre-biblical story suggest that Lot’s wife actually turned into vapor rather than salt, since in those days salt was found in vapor-filled swamps.

But for my purposes today I’d like to stick with the idea of turning into a pillar of salt when we look back into our past.

In our lives we go through many planetary cycles.  Some are harmonious and create ease in our lives.  Some have the potential to be difficult and can create havoc or open a door to more painful experiences.  I have seen clients who, after a long slog through a challenging period, are afraid to look forward into a brighter future despite the fact that their current planetary cycles are filled with blessings and opportunity.

When we feel we are stuck in a cave after a huge storm, refusing to step outside, it doesn’t matter how rosy our astrology is or how beautiful – we won’t be able to move forward.  In today’s world there are real dangers that lurk everywhere, including the fear that the world will end in 2012.  If the world is ending, some ask why bother?

We can make that cave as comfortable as possible, but we will never experience the beauty of the world around us and the potential that exists if we can just step outside for a moment and allow the warmth of the Sun to bathe us in infinite possibility.  In that moment, the experience of warmth and possibility is all that exists.

And in that moment, the rest of our life begins to unfold.

This is why the story of Lot’s wife is so important.  We can’t look back and assume that the past equals the future or we will turn into a pillar of salt: immobilized by our fears and unable to move forward.  The process of life review is an important one, but only so far as it helps us to gain the knowledge we need to move forward in a new direction.

Live fully in the beauty of this breath.  Right now.  And turn your face to the Sun.