My Sunday Thought for 091717: Each Step I Take

"If you can see your path laid out in front of you step by step, you know it's not your path. Your own path you make with every step you take. That's why it's your path."

-- Joseph Campbell (1904-1987), professor comparative mythology/religion 

Around 500 years before the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, Greek philosopher Heraclitus wrote, “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” It is also true that you can never go home again; I discovered such after I joined the military and then went to my 10 year high school reunion. I found it to be a sad occasion and never returned for another. It was sad to see the many classmates of which I had little in common, those who had done much with their lives and gone nowhere, who learned so much... and knew so little.  It hurt my heart.

Plato would say that a philosopher is one who seeks wisdom, and if I attain the wisdom which I seek I would be a sage.  I have found, in order to seek anything you must first understand what it is not.  In order to understand you must first taste of the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge.  God states in Genesis 3:22, "The man has now become like one of Us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever."  

The way scripture presents the story of Eden, our "perfect" God... made a mistake.  Was God angered because we exercised free will which it would seem God intended us to have, or we would not have been given rules to follow, right?  How were we to truly enjoy God's gifts unless we understood the goodness of them?  It would then stand to reason; in order to seek truth we must first be knowledgeable of untruth.  In order to know goodness we must first know evil, and for kindness, anger.  In order to discover the light we must first discover the darkness, and to appreciate life we must first be intimate with death.  

For many of us, it would seem, the road to salvation lies through the valley of the shadow of death, for we must surely fall before we can rise above.  Who has faith which is stronger, one who states they have faith, or one whose faith has been tested through trial by fire?  There is much to be said for the old adage, whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger, even if being stronger means being seriously pissed off at what tried to kill you.

"We don't receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us or spare us."

-- Marcel Proust (1871-1922), novelist, essayist, critic

Wisdom is not the same as intelligence.  There is no such thing as "common sense."  I can certainly attest to running across my fair share of graduates from institutions of higher learning, those folks with multiple doctorates, who don't have good sense.  They are supremely intelligent, yet they look at life through the eyes of a pig staring at a wristwatch.  Homer Simpson is in good company, and I feel so bad for Homer.

Each step I take, my journey brings me to where I need to be, even if I don't know why I'm there.  I am constantly pressing the elevator button and arriving at a floor not of my choosing.  I have tested this numerous times, paid attention to the up, down, and floor choice, only to arrive at an alternate destination.  I have asked others if they experience the same only to discover how special, or cursed, I am.  I make a point of getting out on the floor to which I arrive, hoping to find an intended purpose which, so far, might be obvious to the power guiding me but still remains, for me, a miracle unseen.  So far the only intended purpose I see is to be keeping me off of my preferred floor.  I do not question fate, however; I try to go with the flow.

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be."

-- Douglas Adams (1952-2001), author, musician

Life is like trying to dance to music without rhythm; the moment you think you have it, you don't.  It is better to take life as it comes, dance each moment a step at a time, and laugh at the humor of it all, even if that humor seems, at times, dark.  Celebrate life, even in death, and celebrate the loss of friends and lovers with memories, fond or not, of what went before.  Have no regrets.  Bad decisions are lessons to be embraced as the education they provide, but not to be dwelled upon at the exclusion of all else.  These are the memories of lessons, tests failed and accomplished, which make up who we are, and who we will become, in this life and in the ones to follow.  You can choose to see your existence through the eyes of a zombie, walking through life living, yet dead, or lie down and die, giving up.  Better that you should snatch yourself up and press forward.  

Life awaits those who see, understand, and desire the excitement of the game, the winning and the losing.  Life awaits those who continue to walk the walk, talk the talk, and continue to dance!

The journey between what you once were and who you are now becoming is where the dance of life really takes place.

-- Barbara De Angelis, relationship author, consultant, lecturer

Worrying over what has gone before benefits nothing any more than worrying over that, in the present or future, which you have no control.  It is a waste of time and energy better spent trying to excel in life and love.  If you truly think life is a waste of time, you have missed the very point of life.

It is all about the journey.  It is about the roller coaster ride of ups and downs.  I have lost thousands of dollars in the stock market, made it back, lost it, and made it back again.  What fun it is to laugh your way to the top and white knuckle it as you scream your way to the bottom and prepare for the next hill, and the next, learning with each rise and fall until, up and up, the ride finally get longer, steeper, and higher.

"No regrets. No looking back. Just hold onto life and move forward. We have no way of knowing what lies ahead...and that is what makes the journey even more exciting."

-- Bernajoy Vaal

Our journey through life doesn't end with our death.  Death is simply a release of our soul from the physical, tangible, form which anchored us, for the blink of an eye, to this reality.  Our journey has not ended any more than it did countless other times we have moved on.  Perhaps it would be best if we could simply remember, then we would realize how little importance we need to waste on time.  Maybe we could all start enjoying the journey from our birth and not worry about the massive amount of minutia which burdens most of us as we grow older.  But, that would defeat the whole purpose of the lesson, I suppose; learning for ourselves how truly simple and marvelous life is, always was, and will continue to be.

Am I a philosopher or just a guy that chooses to write about philosophical stuff?  Do I make any sense, or am I just writing bullshit?  I think whatever titles or labels we garner in life should be bestowed upon us by our peers.  We would be well served not to concern ourselves with such egotistical pooh as titles, labels, or prefixes and suffixes, unless it serves some greater purpose than our own.  Like the rest of life, this too will present itself down the road by those who require it of us, and when it is time.  Until such time, there is much life to live and much road to travel, one step after another, moving ever forward with the grace of God.

We have stories to tell, stories that provide wisdom about the journey of life. What more have we to give one another than our 'truth' about our human adventure as honestly and as openly as we know how?

-- Rabbi Saul Rubin

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint.

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and while engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research. Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as Chaplain Program Liaison, at a regional medical center.