People are amazing. Whether encountering the supermarket
check-out lady, the garage attendant, an erudite scholar, a child, an old
friend, a co-worker, or a complete stranger on a street corner, they all have a
story with thousands of intricate twists and turns that have brought them
into our moment of connection.
One could extract a life story from anybody and make a good movie out of it. Where there is life, energy expresses itself in unique albeit sometimes bizarre expressions. We simply need to ask questions and listen to what our attention draws forth from those humans. Even the ones who are significantly damaged have a rationale that provides a labyrinth of fascinating links to the now.
And then the other side of the story: most people possess a variety of annoying character traits, ranging from mildly irritating to an intensity that intrudes on one's psyche like a smothering wet towel wrapped around the entire head and face. While it's hard to keep one's cool as the other's personality grates up against our own story, there is a key to loving, nonetheless. And that is the remembrance of the birthplace of our stories.
At the core of every being, a drive exists for happiness, safety, comfort, and love. From this womb of positive and perfect intentionality, the quest for wellness gets distorted as we grow up nurtured on the tales of our ancestors: you will go to hell if you don't accept Jesus as your savior; you are an infidel if you don't accept Allah; you are the chosen ones as sons and daughters of Israel; Joseph Smith lost the tablets in the woods, but they did come from God, after all. Ad infinitum.
Just as one keeps a keen focus on the bullseye while pulling back the bow and pointing the arrow, perhaps we would irritate each other less, and love each other more, if we kept our eye on the central point. Slinging everyone we encounter with cupid's arrow of love presents a wonderful alternative for making it through the day. N'est-ce pas?
One could extract a life story from anybody and make a good movie out of it. Where there is life, energy expresses itself in unique albeit sometimes bizarre expressions. We simply need to ask questions and listen to what our attention draws forth from those humans. Even the ones who are significantly damaged have a rationale that provides a labyrinth of fascinating links to the now.
And then the other side of the story: most people possess a variety of annoying character traits, ranging from mildly irritating to an intensity that intrudes on one's psyche like a smothering wet towel wrapped around the entire head and face. While it's hard to keep one's cool as the other's personality grates up against our own story, there is a key to loving, nonetheless. And that is the remembrance of the birthplace of our stories.
At the core of every being, a drive exists for happiness, safety, comfort, and love. From this womb of positive and perfect intentionality, the quest for wellness gets distorted as we grow up nurtured on the tales of our ancestors: you will go to hell if you don't accept Jesus as your savior; you are an infidel if you don't accept Allah; you are the chosen ones as sons and daughters of Israel; Joseph Smith lost the tablets in the woods, but they did come from God, after all. Ad infinitum.
Just as one keeps a keen focus on the bullseye while pulling back the bow and pointing the arrow, perhaps we would irritate each other less, and love each other more, if we kept our eye on the central point. Slinging everyone we encounter with cupid's arrow of love presents a wonderful alternative for making it through the day. N'est-ce pas?
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