Undoing Blame

 

photo credit: Aaron Springston

Upon hearing from an old acquaintance, my thought​s​ turned to a conflict of opinion we had years ago. All the grudges I had held, the blame apportioned, came flooding ​back. Then I stopped and wondered why it had ever mattered so much in the first place. My conclusion was that I had felt self-righteous in the situation. I had taken actions and words personally AND made assumptions about the reasons for her behavior. Now I look back and see that it just doesn't matter. Any hurt that I thought had been inflicted on me was nothing but my self-important response. Almost immediately I began to wonder if she thought badly of me. Then I realized that didn't really matter either. I'm not responsible for what anyone else thinks, only myself. As a good friend tells me time and again, it’s none of my business what anyone thinks about me! I'm happy to have released yet another perceived pain in favor of remembering the goodness of our true Selves!

"If your brothers are part of you and you blame them for your deprivation, you are blaming yourself. And you cannot blame yourself without blaming them. That is why blame must be undone, not seen elsewhere. Lay it to yourself and you cannot know yourself, for only the ego blames at all." A Course in Miracles, Chapter 11:IV-5

Breaking Thought Barriers

 

photo credit: Richard Quick

One of the Course in Miracles lessons states that the world I see holds nothing that I want.  This could be interpreted as meaning we must give up all enjoyment from this delightful form we’re holding. On the contrary! It's asking us to look past the world which is the creation of mortal mind, to the world of divine Mind. By setting aside the unrealities of belief, we are breaking the same kind of thought barriers which had to be set aside for humanity to realize the world was round. When asked to see everything with new eyes, to dare to stretch past belief and learned behavior, we may be frightened or confused. In this state of mind, our "ego" can tell us that it's all just nonsense and it's better to stay with what is well-known. But is it? If you feel -- really feel, deep inside — that there must be more to this existence than meets the human eye, then you will want to know what that is. We are capable of so much more than we realize. The veil is getting thinner!

"In the material world, thought has brought to light with great rapidity many useful wonders. With like activity have thought's swift pinions been rising towards the realm of the real, to the spiritual cause of those lower things which give impulse to inquiry. Belief in a material basis, from which may be deduced all rationality, is slowly yielding to the idea of a metaphysical basis, looking away from matter to Mind as the cause of every effect." Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 268:1-9

The Journey by Mary Oliver

 

The Journey - By Mary Oliver

One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice --

though the whole house

began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles.

"Mend my life!"

each voice cried.

But you didn't stop.

You knew what you had to do,

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at the very foundations,

though their melancholy

was terrible.

It was already late

enough, and a wild night,

and the road full of fallen

branches and stones.

But little by little,

as you left their voices behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

and there was a new voice

which you slowly

recognized as your own,

that kept you company

as you strode deeper and deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do --

determined to save

the only life you could save.”

― Mary Oliver

Choose Again?

 

Why do human beings find it so difficult to do the right thing? Let’s assume some things are right to one person and not so much to another. Setting that aside, yet aware it’s there, ponder on these thoughts with me. If we experience certain physical maladies (which are rampant), we know we could eat the right things and probably get better. But we’d rather take a pill and hope for the best, not wanting to abandon old habits. We improve our world by picking up litter, and we could facilitate change by not making litter! Yet we continue to use oil-based plastics which are as bad for our earth as that fried Twinkie is for that guy. Are there alternatives we could use? Yes, but it would take active participation on our part. Yours and mine. Maybe we would endure a few soggy straws before new technology evolves for the use of bamboo and hemp, for example. When the year of our isolation began, everyone was conserving their paper products to counteract all those who were hoarding theirs. That conservation caused us to examine how many wasteful habits could be replaced by copasetic-with-the planet alternatives. Word has it that an electric Ford pickup truck is making a big stir around the oil company break rooms nowadays. Thank goodness! We resist until a tipping point occurs, then we acquiesce and begin pulling weeds from cracks in sidewalks rather than getting out the herbicide. These are the types of “right things” I’m talking about. If your choices don’t feel right — choose again?

“Consciousness of right-doing brings its own reward, but not amid the smoke of battle is merit seen and appreciated by lookers-on.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 37:13

Discovering Better Ways

photo credit: Richard Quick

 ​What gratitude I feel in my heart for this past year! I’ve loved watching the changes we have undergone during what can only be described as challenging times. The extremes in behavioral tendencies have been remarkable, and my admiration and, alternatively, repugnance for people’s actions has been manic/depressive in scope! Schools, restaurants, medical facilities, churches, retail stores, bridge clubs, music festivals — everything! — has changed and evolved, mostly in positive, more efficient ways. While we look forward to getting back together in groups to celebrate holidays and enjoy events, many of us have become more sedate in our enjoyment of life. I remember one man posting on Facebook what a relief it was to not have to attend every event in Eureka Springs, as he had always felt he would miss something if he was not there. Eureka parades are legendary, and not having them has taken some of the exuberance from us — particularly Valerie Damon, who is in this wonderful photograph — but by not being obliged to attend gallery openings and fundraisers, many have relaxed into the silence between thoughts, and discovered they are happy there. Hopefully we don’t rush back into the old ways too quickly, missing the chance to find better ways of living. Namaste...

“The true theory of the universe, including man, is not in material history but in spiritual development. Inspired thought relinquishes a material, sensual, and mortal theory of the universe and adopts the spiritual and immortal.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 547:25

It Is Impossible to See Two Worlds

 

photo credit: Aaron Springston

It is impossible to see two worlds. This is another lesson topic in A Course in Miracles. There is a world of Love, and there is a world of fear. I cannot see them both at the same time. This seems like an easy choice, but fear is often insidious and I may not realize which viewpoint is driving my actions. I can't know the world of Spirit when I'm thinking from the standpoint of mortal sense. I can't love my neighbors when I'm judging them. I can't hear the guidance of intuition when my thought is full of chaotic chatter. These dualities represent the two worlds we wish to embrace simultaneously. Everything I do, or say, or think, places me firmly in one world or the other. Moment by moment, I choose what to accept as truth. By consistently turning away from mortal concepts and looking to spiritual interpretations, I am choosing the world I want to see. And if I'm not comfortable with what I'm seeing, guess what? I can choose again!

“Take heart, dear sufferer, for this reality of being will surely appear sometime and in some way. There will be no more pain, and all tears will be wiped away. When you read this, remember Jesus' words, 'The kingdom of God is within you.' This spiritual consciousness is therefore a present possibility.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 573:29-2

What I Think I Know

 ​

photo credit: Nick Franchi

Many of us resort to chants and/or affirmations when seeking a specific outcome in life. ​Some people see nothing wrong with this approach -- and perhaps even a lot of right in it! I've come to think of this as mental manipulation, or a form of hypnotism, which may create a temporary change, but is not a lasting solution to anything. So then, if I'm not going to try to talk life into doing what I want it to, what am I going to do? I'm going to work to get out of my own way, to quiet my mind, to forget everything I’ve ever thought I knew about spirit. It's not my job to delineate what that is. Releasing what I think I know, surrendering projected outcomes, and totally relying on Love, I trust that everything I need will be added unto me. I needn’t think about what these things are,  because whatever the outcome is, it will be far better than anything I could have planned. Truth is waiting for me to clear the mist which is hiding it. For this, I am most grateful.

"This is what is meant by seeking Truth, Christ, not 'for the loaves and fishes,' nor, like the Pharisee, with the arrogance of rank and display of scholarship, but like Mary Magdalene, from the summit of devout consecration, with the oil of gladness and the perfume of gratitude, with tears of repentance and with those hairs all numbered by the Father.” Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 367:10-16