Gazing in the Mirror

February 17 - Making A Difference

I am only one; but still I am
one. I cannot do everything,
but still I can do something;
I will not refuse to do something
I can do.
~ Helen Keller

Spirituality is natural goodness.
God is not a person; God is a
presence personified in us.
Spirituality is not a thing; it is
the atmosphere of God's Presence,
goodness, truth and beauty.
~ Ernest Holmes

In a variety of ways the concept of whether a single life and how that is lived makes any difference has come up as one of those patterns that seem part and parcel of my perception of this life that I lead. So my mind has been mulling over such concepts and how thoughts such as these might relate to making a difference by simply living whatever life it is that we express. Can it really be that simple ? I believe it can. Simply by being the authentically unique expression that we each are, we satisfy some need that Spirit has to express in exactly that way. It becomes the highest calling we could accept, arising from the fact that two people chose to create a child from their genetic material and bodily resources, agreeing to nurture life and care for, this body we find ourselves inhabiting.

I believe that most people inclined towards spirituality have a bit of an activist streak in them. There are likely to be a few who chose spirituality simply in an attempt to make themselves "special", which is where some of the desire to "achieve" something identified as "true" enlightenment comes into the equation. That desire to be made "superior" in some manner in the eyes of other human beings seems to me to be firmly rooted in ego. There is a better reason I believe for living a spiritually informed life – to be a better person in the ways that we each express ourselves and to perhaps in some manner leave the expressions of society and civilization a bit more caring, kinder, more tolerant and more accepting of one another – thereby reducing some major stressors for us all.

I sometimes wonder whether what I write in these essays actually "matters". Sometimes a reader will leave a comment, which is always appreciated of course. And the truth is that I am honestly writing these essays for my own reasons, pleasures and to keep a commitment that I have made to my own self – to realize the challenge of writing a bit from my own perspectives each day, rather than simply sharing the words of others who I yet find of value and still enjoy sharing here and there online. I believe that all thoughts come from the same intelligent font of thought forms. Individually some of us are better at apprehending those than others are and some of us are better at articulating these than others are as well. We don't truly own these thoughts. We simply use them like the tool that language is to express commonalities to one another.

Yet it is also a factor of our individuality – differences in circumstances of birth, life experiences, beliefs and education, emotional temperament and personality – that allows us to "own" our thoughts and words as something that we each possess to contribute to the common experience and even be compensated for. There is effort required to write down thoughts and a real cost involved in disseminating the results of any writer's work. While what any one of us might share is not "new" in the big scheme of things, our unique way of expressing that might allow another human being to comprehend something unique that they might not have understood otherwise. Our society has developed methods for compensating individuals who excel in such efforts or are simply fortunate enough to bring their work into manifestation.

Recently a couple of my acquaintances were discussing issues of empathy and compassion. Our global population has increased exponentially in less than a hundred years. It has been noted that individually, it is simply not possible to care about so many other people, to be aware of the hardships of many of the people that are currently alive, or even to do anything about the less than ideal circumstances of some. And so the concept came up as to whether simply living the best individual life that one is capable of makes any difference. Also another question arose – Does it make any difference if our thoughts occasionally turn in caring and fond expressions for other people that are not physically present with us ? Many of those people who I am aware do consistently practice such perspectives and beliefs seem to have also received at times affirmations that doing so did make a difference.

When my mother-in-law died one of the happier experiences for my husband came about by receiving so many letters telling him about some difference my mother-in-law's interaction with their own life had made. She had made such a significant enough difference that the correspondent wanted to share that with him at such a sacred time. My daughter experienced similar happy acknowledgments when her step-mother died at a relatively young age from the complications of cancer. It is a happy outcome to the ending of any life for one's loved ones are able to feel that the life of the one they grieve for made some kind of difference, even if only in one other life. I feel my life has already made some kind of difference in some small and in some larger ways, just because I've been willing to live that life fully. It is from that awareness that I do gain a deep sense of personal satisfaction. I am left feeling that living a physically incarnated life is actually worth it for reasons beyond any personal gain or benefit alone.

~ perspective

I may never know the results of
my actions but I simply try to do
what feels like the right thing.
I seek to be useful in return for
being physically present on the planet.
I send out tiny ripples of change
that I hope are for the good by
being willing to stand up for my ideals
or when attempting to be helpful to
another person or in seeking justice.
Whatever I spend my time doing,
I consider it significant, even the
lowliest tasks when performed with
love and dignity are important to
the common good.
I participate in Life – I care and
I help, I practice my beliefs, I extend
kindness and seek to be fair, I forgive
quickly and I work to manifest my dreams.

#achievement #activism #commitment #communication #compensation #ego #individuality #meaning #purpose #understanding