Going Your Way

Set aside your beliefs for a minute. Forget what you've been told by your religious training. Ignore the thoughts that make you question the very existence of God, much less how a loving one could allow so many bad things to happen to good people.

Now, without benefit of input from your mind, answer this question.

Where do you come from?

Without the reassuring and self-righteous (and often wrong) thoughts that are ever-present in our minds, we're forced to enter an experiential world that seems very strange to most people.

A number of years back a friend remarked how unusual my choice of the law was as a career path for me. It's not that he thought there was anything wrong with the law. Only that it didn't seem to fit me, that he saw me more as a healer or teacher than hired gun.

We recently attended a public forum where tea and coffee party representatives squared off. It wasn't pretty. Both sides of the audience took turns making statements that inflamed the other. Neither spent much time on the issues, and even less listening to those they didn't agree with.

What hope do we have that Washington will listen to us when those who oppose the way they do business won't listen to each other?

Anyway, here's part of an email I later sent to a local coffee organizer:

So many times we let the apparent obstacles of circumstance hold us back.

Sometimes it's a matter of excess. Too old. Too young. Too inexperienced. Too much experience.

At others it's lack. Not smart enough. Don't have the right connections. Wrong degree. Too little money. Or know how. Or family support. Or whatever.