Love Versus Fear

I wrote yesterday of the relief I experienced when switching from an attitude of feeling hurt to an attitude of loving kindness.  The fact is that with virtually any situation in my life, I have the choice of an attitude of love well-being and confidence or an that of fear, hurt and hesitation.  The love choice is very open and freeing while the fear choice tends to be binding and restrictive.  Neither changes the previous situation but can certainly change my reaction.  I am reminded of the words of Newton when he commented that “Pain in life is especially insidious because it can block the healing power of our souls”.

Loving Kindness

Today, I had some difficulty for a while before the relief of returning to a feeling of loving kindness.  The difficulty was that I took some criticism personally and felt injured, not very spiritual.  When I returned to loving kindness, I could feel the relief wash over me.  Switching over to viewing the whole situation with loving kindness allows for a more realistic view, without any feeling of personal injury.  I can then take any corrective action needed, and a recognition that I was simply doing my best.

Do Your Best

I don’t lie but I live in a world where a lot of people in responsible positions do.  I also do not manipulate others for selfish reasons, though I do use manipulation in an effort to help those I work with to learn & grow.  I tend to expect others to realize and understand that I don’t lie or manipulate, a good example of my being silly.  I am reminded of the words of Mother Teresa when she commented “Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; Give the world the best you’ve got anyway. You see, in the final analysis, It never was between you and them anyway.”

Attachments

The topic of attachments of various sorts kept coming up for me today.  If I am attached to some aspect of myself, that attachment limits my ability to grow or see things clearly, so I attempt to let them go.  I consider my attachments to be a normal part of my humanity, so when they come up, I just smile inwardly or even laugh with gentle loving laughter, which results in not taking them seriously and letting them pass.  If I take that gentle loving approach, the attachments are less likely to affect my behavior in any way.

Letting Go

The topic in the recovery meeting tonight was “letting go”, a process I have done a lot of in my years of recovery.  I spoke, indicating its importance to me in order for growth to take place.  I have had to let go of many worldly attitudes in order to move forward emotionally and spiritually.  I also found myself today, talking with several people concerning the importance of meditative practice, which involves letting go of many attitudes and ideas in order to arrive at clarity.

The Mystery

Today, I found myself repeatedly reflecting on the words of deCastillejo when she said “faced with the mystery of life and death we know almost nothing”.  The fact is that we cannot discern what is good or bad, tragic or beneficial.  We have a very limited view of what we think is reality.  Our view, limited as it is, is also a valuable part of the human condition.  I have been blessed with being able to see a little bit more, which reduces my fears considerably.  However, deCastillejo’s words still ring true.

Empty Fullness

On the surface, life events can certainly appear to be difficult, challenging or even tragic and they are if a person restricts their view to the events themselves.  However, working through and/or processing the same events usually strengthens or nurtures what I call the “God seed” in each of us, resulting in spiritual growth.  It is easy to see this by looking at the response of the public to such events, both initially and more long term.  Both views are accurate, just different.

Connection

I keep hearing about the dominant culture attempting to utilize, usually for short-term capital gain, and alter some parcel of land that native people consider sacred.  For example the San Francisco Peaks, the area around the Grand Canyon or the potential copper deposits under the land of the San Carlos Apaches.  I recognize that these are complex issues but there is generally little recognition that we are all connected and connected to the earth, on which we depend.  There is also little recognition that we essentially stole the land from native people and are now using the same land for our personal profit.

Gratitude

Lots of feelings of gratitude today & knowing that things could be a lot worse.  It is interesting for me since I face major physical difficulties daily.  However, I can also consider that I am getting paid for doing work that I love, eat well, sleep well and have a supportive wife.  I can also recall that twenty-five years ago, I was in physical therapy learning how to crawl.  Like I said, things could be a lot worse.

A Holistic Approach

I attended a workshop on calming the mind today.  The presenter had a decidedly holistic approach, which I found very enjoyable.  He spoke of many recent studies showing the positive physical effects of performing activities that calm the mind and/or reduce stress.  He mentioned some of the standard things like exercise and sleep, but also things like having positive feelings, gratitude and meditation, making use of the mind-body connection.  He did not go as far as mentioning the positive physical effects of love, but he approached that.