The Spirit in You

I'd really like to say that I recognize, see, and respect the spirit in you--the spirit that you are, actually.  I'd love to say that, but if I did, then I'd be lying, unfortunately.  The truth is that I'm usually pretty blinded, so preoccupied with the tasks and demands of right now that I simply don't see the divine in the people with me.  I don't see the spirits that are immortal, the part of ourselves that is so very special--and so amazingly beautiful.  Instead, I see the human forms in front of me, and I see their foibles and their flaws and their mistakes rather than their exquisite true natures.

I'm not alone in having this tendency.  Most of the adults that I know don't see past the surfaces of the people they spend time with.  Most of us get so caught up in solving problems and accomplishing "tasks" that we neglect to experience the eternal spirit that is the essence of who we are.  And once the current problem or task is taken care of, we move on to the next one.  That way we keep busy and never really have to think too much about what we truly are.

I really do regret not seeing more of the divine in the people around me, though.  If I were to see it, I most certainly would be able to treat the people in my life with more dignity and respect.  I also would be able to relate to people more strongly, not having any fear at all of rejection or anything like that.  After all, if I saw the greatness that is truly a part of all of us, then my lack of fear would allow me to get closer to everyone.

You are a spirit, here on this planet for a short time.  If we all were to spend more time focused on being able to see the true selves of the people we spend our lives with, then we would recognize the special divinity that all of us have, the amazing side of ourselves that is eternal and completely focused, patient, and loving.  It's the side of ourselves that we neglect, in part because we don't believe that we have it; after all, if we can't see it in others, just how are we supposed to see it in ourselves?

Because we reside within God’s spirit and God’s spirit
resides within us, we are, quite literally, surrounded
by and infused with the divine—though we may frequently
fail to recognize God’s presence.  And this surrounding,
infusing spirit of God is fully and irreversibly committed
to the well being of creation and to its ongoing transformation.
Furthermore, the divine spirit is intimately and actively
involved in your life, in my life, and in every life.

Gary Egeberg