LEARNING TO LAUGH AT OUR INEPT ATTEMPTS

Very possibly the first blinding flash of the obvious I ever had came to me on the playground at Mt. Logan School in my hometown. I wanted a hug from my brother, and he was utterly oblivious to me or my wants. I remember thinking then that I can't get a hug, I have to give a hug. I do not recall, but I can realistically doubt, that I went over and gave him a hug. 

My brother died when I was ten years old, and I never consciously thought of that again until I was well over thirty. The reason it came to mind then was that a group of us were all rhapsodizing about unconditional love, that we all needed it in our lives. My BFO was that no one can get unconditional love, we can only give unconditional love. And I recalled my thought about the hug all those years ago.

It was sometime later that I realized that, in fact, only God can give unconditional love. We can only give conditional love...and then go to God to hone down our conditions!

The paradox is that we can't get any of the inside things. The reason being is we already have them. They are ours to give...that's how we find out we already have them.

Take for instance, understanding. We can talk till our face falls off, we will not get understanding...we can get someone to agree that they understand but that's usually just to shut us up. Then, because they want to be understood, they start to talk...and talk...and talk…until we agree. Just to shut them up. The secret is, if we learn to honestly listen to each other in the first place, love does take seed and understanding grows and flows.

Reminds me of Dylan's song asking how many years? How many years does it take before we understand that our life is not about us...it's about others. It's about understanding that if we love our enemies, we will have no enemies. It's about realizing that all on our own we are incapable of doing that...of loving our enemies. But that the Spirit within us can and will if sought.

It’s about realizing that we already have that which we seek, but we must seek help from that Spirit, our higher power, in order to give it away. Daily. As we breathe. Without hesitation. And failing…then laughing at our inept attempts.

It’s about never giving up that single goal...for we are learning how to go to God for God. That is All.

Thank you.