Knocked

The ego was out there for everyone.  As I glanced across the eyes, it was easy to see the different approaches people were taking to the scene at hand.  Some were taking notes.  Others were watching and have a short muse.  Still others were caught up in an intense, likely introspective, reflection.  I do not know quite where I stood.  There was no question that the extreme ego as well as the reactions to everyone caught up in the scene had caught my attention.  Everything was ripe for a radical disaster.  Who know what was going to unfold?
 
It could just as easily have been you or me.  It is hard to see yourself in the mirror, especially when you refuse to look.  You may be the exception to the rule.  I know I am not.  My ego often knows no bounds.  My ignorance, especially of the moment at hand, can be blatant.  My inability to see what is going on is on the extreme.  On this subject, at the very least, I am blind, deaf, and often willfully silent. 
 
It does not matter what happened in this particular situation.  The realized disaster is not the heart of the lesson.  Life does not crush every inflated ego, at least not in the immediate.  Life does not respond to every act of stupidity, ignorance, and foolishness, at least not in the moment.  The questions that haunted me, then and now, are this; am I that ignorant fool that refuses to learn and grow?  Will I go through life displaying my willful self-centric view?  Do I hold onto a mythical image or focus on the community around me?
 
Candidly, I know I am trouble.  I thank God for family, friends, and coworkers that hold my feet to the fire.  Their words reflect the wisdom of old.  “Get off your high horse and sit in the dirt, virgin daughter of Babylon.  No more throne for you—sit on the ground, daughter of the Chaldeans.  Nobody will be calling you ‘charming’ and ‘alluring’ anymore.  Get used to it.”  (Isaiah 47.1)