In a recent conversation, I was asked about the current lessons in my work. I had not thought about it until that moment, yet there was no doubt about the answer. “It is always good to do the right thing. One needs for worry about priority. The right answer is always the best way to the destination one seeks.”
I realize this may seem fuzzy. In my experience, especially in the darkness of the night when one is unable to misrepresent reality, it can be a difficult truth to accept. Easy paths are appealing. Shortcuts are attractive. Results (especially short term) trump processes. Doing what is right can take courage. More importantly, it requires reflection, consideration, and consultation. This is where I find myself impatiently struggling.
Repeatedly Life reminds me that my immediate reaction and answer is rarely the best. I need to include reflection and learning at the beginning of my day. It helps frame the values I know to be true. The process shapes my way of seeing what is happening. One can safely move quickly if one begins from this starting point.
A truth that bears repeating is one of choice. Two options is a conundrum. There are always at least three. If you can only see one or two, look for more! Ask others to share their perspective. Look for more not less. Life offers us more. How far we want to see will depend on what we choose to see.
Listen to the insights, perspectives, and wisdom of others. It is in sharing with compassion, in speaking with mercy, and in living in community that we can be see and hold Hope. For me, the process releases me into a new space filled with openness and possibilities.
In this context, I hear Paul’s words differently. “Since we want to become spiritually one with the Master, we must not pursue the kind of sex that avoids commitment and intimacy, leaving us more lonely than ever—the kind of sex that can never ‘become one.’” (1 Corinthians 6.17)
Awareness opens life to More.
