I am relearning an old lesson. Helping someone see does not mean that you can start with your insight. As powerful, revealing, and perfect as my ideas can be, they may not be what another needs. Every step forward starts from where one is. As much as you or me may want to start somewhere else, we cannot. We have to start from where we find ourselves.
It could be anyone that I know. The more I see of her/him, the more potential I uncover. There is a strength found within each. Everyone has the potential to be more than s/he is. Both facts are true, even if the individual cannot see within their reflection.
Know this is both a blessing and a burden. The burden is that one knows but may not be able to do anything with the information. The blessing is that we have the freedom to make a difference with what we know. The challenge lies in knowing what to do.
The recent reminders came with the original mantras.
Remember the starting point. It is never solely about the other. Wisdom reminds us that “the person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love.” (1 John 4.8)
Helping me providing something that they know they need. It may be a listening ear. It could be time. There are many different ways one can help. The one certainty is that in order for one to receive within, one needs to be that they either want or need the gift.
True help is never condition. Help is simply help. It begins in the present. When and where we are. The next step an outcome of trust, listening, and choosing to act. We only participate in trust. Everything after that is with the other.
As today dawns, you and I have the opportunity to make a difference to those around us. We can make a difference. What we do will define our lives. It is our choice, our freedom.
