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As In Little Things - Inner Growth Through Daily Experience

There is something about this tree that draws my attention every time I walk past it. Perhaps it is the strength conveyed by its solitary stance.

It seems to say: My strength is my trust. Unconcerned about all external events, it lives in the knowledge of its uniqueness which reveals the eternal in the smallest detail of its bark, branches, and leaves.

It trusts that its labor is important. It trusts the spark of Light that sustains it. And out of this trust, it thrives!

From the second floor of a hotel room in Worthington, Minnesota, Victor observed a small accident in the hotel parking lot. A man in a red Ford Focus hit a parked grey Honda Civic while trying to park his vehicle. Victor observes the anxiety on the man’s face. What would he do?

At first, he drove far away from the scene of the accident. Then he drove back as if to see the extent of the damage. Victor watched intently wishing the man strength to do the right thing. He sent him waves of calmness.

The man drove away again and parked at the other end of the parking lot. He stepped out of his vehicle, heading toward the hotel front door, but then changed his angle to pass by the scene of the accident once more. He paused in front of the dented vehicle shaking his head in frustration. He wrote a note with his contact information and placed it under the wiper. As he turned to leave, he considered the financial implication of his note and took it back.

Victor watched all this keenly, experiencing the inner struggle along with the man and urging him to victory. The man finally placed the note back on the car’s windshield and walked into the hotel. Victor was overjoyed for he knew that there were cameras in the parking lot which recorded the accident. Matters would have been much worse for the man in the future had he not done the right thing in that moment.

As it is with this man, might it also be the same for us all. Do we all have a Victor above urging us to victory over our daily struggles? Are all our actions and innermost desires which are unseen by others on earth recorded elsewhere awaiting us?

 

A sweet little girl named Cheryl was the joy of her parents. She lacked for nothing essential and had not a care in the world. She repaid her parents’ solicitude with obedience and her natural vivacious smile which always lit up a room. As she climbed in age, exposure to friends in high school as well as an increasing awareness of her own abilities began to weaken her respect for her parents. Formerly, she sought her parent’s guidance for she knew they always had her best interest at heart. Formerly, she knew all that she possessed was the result of her parent’s efforts. Formerly, she sought to make her parents proud.

Now, she wishes to stand out among her friends. “Off course, they should send me to school, off course they should take care of me – isn’t that what parents are supposed to do?” She had normalized the great love showered on her and no longer appreciated it. She uses the resources provided by her parents to live a comfortable live. She could explain the benefits of these resources but no longer acknowledged its source.

Decades past and the memory of her parents faded. She relied solely on her own limited intelligence as well as the opinion of others to navigate through life without even considering for one second that a higher guidance was available to her. In quiet moments, she is often consumed by an inner emptiness but she consoles herself with the thought that these ails must be part of life. Afterall it is the same with her friends.

What is the point of understanding the characteristics of the sun and its impact on life on earth if one does not appreciate the love of its Creator who proffers this great Star for the benefit of all creatures in the solar system?

What is the point of understanding the function of every organ in the human body if one does not bow down in awe at the wisdom of its Designer?

What is the point of understanding the benefit of the abundant resources beneath the soil if one does not receive the gifts in the spirt with which they were given?

The acknowledgement of the existence of a greater wisdom must first burst through before the search for the path to inner peace can commence.

Once, many centuries ago, there was a massive ugly tree in the middle of a village. It was known as the Tree of Selfishness because it occupied the most fertile piece of land in the entire region, yet it produced no edible fruits. Its long, thick branches prevented sufficient sunlight from reaching the field of crops planted in the vicinity of its enormous shadow.

One day, a young woman suggested that they uproot the tree, as she could see what a burden it had become to her people. They scoffed at her. Uprooting this massive tree would be backbreaking work, they argued; it would require months of hard labor. The tree had always been there, and the people had learned to live with it. They felt that they would continue to find ways to deal with it and refused to see the wisdom in the young woman’s suggestion. Occasionally, they would cut down some of its branches so that more sunlight could reach the struggling crops in the shade underneath the tree. As the years passed, the woman stood by quietly and let them be. She said no more about uprooting the tree.

Generation after generation passed. As the tree grew larger, its heavy branches shaded more and more of the fertile land until the tree nearly blotted out the sun. Food scarcity ensued. The people ran from one expert to another for guidance on how to increase their food production. They would do anything and everything, try all kinds of experiments, read all kinds of books, invent new tools—if only they could find a way to produce enough food to sustain themselves. The people never seriously considered removing the tree, for they refused to see the scourge it had become. All their ancestors had lived with the tree. Stories of the tree had been passed down to them for centuries, so it had become part of their village’s identity. They were willing to pay any price and undertake any action, except the very one that would permanently resolve the problem: taking down the ancient tree.

One day, an old farmer found a tablet buried in the ground beside the ancient tree. Inscribed on the stone were instructions on how to remove the tree. It was the work of the young woman who, centuries before, had suggested that her people uproot the tree. Guided from above, she had written down the instructions that must be adhered to by the people to uproot the Tree of Selfishness.

The old man shared this tablet with his neighbors. Faced with starvation, those who still wished to save themselves began the great work of uprooting the massive tree. They were soon weary unto death, for this work required all their strength, but they gradually grew stronger. The more they attacked the root of the tree, the weaker became its influence over them. Seeing its vulnerability, they worked harder and more confidently until the massive tree, which had cast darkness for a thousand years, collapsed to the ground. Freed of this obstruction, a clear sky to the invigorating rays of the sun was once again restored to the land. Within a few months, the crops prospered, the air was cleaner, and the people were happy. Only now did they discern the widespread impact of the Tree of Selfishness on all aspects of their former lives.

Selfishness is a self-imposed blindness because it blocks out spiritual light. It stifles the luminous spark within us that would otherwise lead us to the greatest happiness. As with the people of this mythic land, selfishness permeates much of our world’s activity today. It has been part of our dealings with one another for so long that it is now engrained in our way of life. Most people are willing to undertake any measure to address the symptoms of a problem. Few have the courage to attack the cause.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Daddy, why do we all receive gifts on Jesus’s birthday?” 10-year-old Shermeen asked her father on their ride home from school. He paused as if to collect his thoughts and then began to tell a story.

“Once upon a time, a Radiant Star hung over a stable heralding the birth of the Prince of Peace. Wise men traveled long distances from their respective kingdoms to pay homage to the Divine Child. They brought with them the finest of birthday gifts. They tarried for a little while in this stable and then returned to their homeland far away from the child.

As an unfulfilled man looks back on the prime of his youthful vigor, so did these wise men relive their long journey to the stable, guided by the Radiant Star. That was the high point of their lives! ‘What became of the Child?’ They often wondered. The melancholic remembrance of their journey lay in the realization of a failed obligation towards the Child. Each gave the finest of material gifts but failed to give themselves in service of the newborn Prince. They abandoned the Prince of Peace whose life they could have smoothed with their wealth.

Sadly this tradition continued long after the time of the wise men. In remembrance of Holy Night on the 25th day each December, man gives the finest of gifts to their loved ones but fail to rededicate themselves to the service of that Peace which the Divine Child brought to mankind.”

“Daddy, does that mean it is wrong to give Christmas gifts?” “No dear, but the purpose of our giving ought to be directed towards spreading that which the Divine Child brought to mankind. Give not out of obligation, but out of love. Give not what brings fleeting pleasures but what awakens the best in the other. But most of all, give yourself to peace, cease not to strive until your whole being is swallowed up in peace.”

 

 

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