Connections
Life happens. Changes (“good” and “bad”), loss, isolation, civil unrest, climate change, politics, and shifts in personal relationships. These are things – some truly important things – that draw our attention away from ourselves just when that is exactly where we need to focus.
It is very tempting to focus on what is going on in the world – especially right now when there is so much actually going on. However, this is often a distraction – a way to NOT look in the mirror. After all, if you are out there – helping, healing, leading the charge against social injustice – you don’t have any energy left for self-examination.
Don’t mistake me – these things are all deeply important. However, in the rush to resurrect justice some very important connections can get lost: your connection to yourself, and your connection to God.
Are you so focused on the “wrong” another person did that you lost track of yourself? Are you acting and reacting from within your space – or are you moving out of your space and merging into the overall (and quite justifiable) group outrage over injustice?
The bible talks about how important it is to take the plank out of your own eye before you try to remove the speck of dust from another person’s eye. Arlo Guthrie says basically the same thing – you gotta do for yourself what you intend to do for the rest of the world.
If you are feeling lonely or isolated, focus on that key word: feeling. A feeling is an emotion and an emotion is your body’s way of communicating with you. Yes, it is nice to visit with other people – other bodies – we are social creatures and we need the interaction. But that deep feeling of loneliness is often your body expressing its need for a connection to you – the spiritual being.
Meditating, taking time for an internal examination, is not about turning away from the larger needs of your community – local, social, or global. It is quite the opposite. Meditation, self-examination and self-healing, is a necessary survival tool. It helps prevent you from getting stuck as you face your outward life and the things you want to accomplish.
When I turn within, I create a connection with myself, I create the space to look at ingrained beliefs in a non-judgmental way that allows me to change those beliefs and heal myself. As I make change internally, it translates to my outward behavior. Sometimes this simply gives others permission to examine themselves and make change. Other times, it shows in the ability to have a direct (and neutral) conversation with someone I disagree with. The internal change is the first step though – it is the step toward God and away from hypocrisy. It is doing for myself what I want to do for the rest of the world.
