“We all know the truth: more connects us than divides us. But in times of crisis, the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.”- King T’Challa, from the Black Panther Marvel movie |
Sometimes, when I forget that truth – that we are all “one single tribe” – I feel like I am left alone. These times of crisis, all times of crises, push us to face our own darkness, and sometimes we need to go inside and take down the walls we have erected to protect ourselves from pain or to insulate ourselves from being vulnerable. This Covid pandemic has stretched me and broken me wide open. When things get tough, it is so easy to fall asleep and forget this heart and mind that want to join with the Divine. Time and time again, I forget that all I have to do is soften my gaze out there, return to myself, and settle into what this moment brings me. It’s really all I want – to connect with what is causing me to feel this separation where I fear the future, the next moment, or the new relationship that is in front of me. So, I choose to go outside and be touched by nature where I can change my focus to my heart and lean in. She calls me by shining the sun through my window or sounding the chimes in my garden with her wind. Through this connection, I can be more committed to my inner path, as I feel my way through all these worries and breathe gently. It opens me to all that is coming my way. So many people are divided by ideas and opinions. No matter the differences, we are much more alike when we live in the heart of compassion. So, I have learned to ask questions instead of making assumptions. And I can listen without having to be right. I let go of everything I think I know and allow the moment to be real. I can hold them with a spacious heart and a still mind. I meet them in the deepest part of my being where I have faced my own fears and shortcomings. Then the moment becomes a way to honor how precious life is, because I only have this time, this present moment with this person. I may never see them again. We don’t have to figure it out, just arrive in the moment open and willing to stand on the bridge together, unafraid because we trust in our own ability to live in the heart of the Beloved. Here we are one; here we are the same. In this present moment, we take refuge inside by being true to ourselves. We can be kind as we sit back and listen to that still small voice that guides us to wisdom. To stay conscious is to be an open heart without holding back or hiding so that we can expand our love to embrace all people. This is the miracle of relationships where we get to meet another soul and open to the wisdom that they share. As we think back, we appreciate what we may have taken for granted -- being with our loved ones, traveling without restrictions, loving with our whole selves. We have been cut off from the most natural way of being. We feel a physical discomfort when we are with someone we want to touch, hug, or kiss but cannot. With masks on and 6 feet of social distancing, we feel the awkwardness. Now that we truly understand loss, let’s blanket this world in our magnificent love. I have found ways to love from the deepest parts of myself. This love that is a divine power will link us all when we open to it and awaken to the truth that there is love in everything. This natural world that surrounds me offers gifts without conditions, and in the presence of this beauty that I am receiving, I feel love. I fill up with this true nature that lives inside of me, and I want to give it away as it fills to overflowing and spilling out. It becomes the silent prayer of my heart beaming out into the world. These bodies are used for communication, and as I unveil myself and look at the truth within, I am free to express all of who I am. In this union, I am a beacon of light for others. I breathe in and say Namaste, “I bow to the light in you.” |
