Connected

I was listening to a pod cast titled, The True Hard Work of Love and Relationships (I would highly recommend this by the way!) the other day and there was this statement by Krista Tippet on her On Being with Alain de Botton where she said, “And I guess — I’ve been having this conversation with a lot of people this year — the truth is, more than ever before perhaps in our world, we are in relationship. We are connected to everyone else. And that’s a fact. Their well-being will impact our well-being..”

The well-being of others and our own well-being are inextricably connected. Powerful stuff! Do we walk through our daily lives with this knowledge and understanding? When I am about to react negatively about or towards someone, do I consciously think about how that will negatively affect me? Conversely when I am about to do something nice or generous for someone, do I think about how that will positively affect me? These thoughts remind me of the movie Avatar (one of my favorites) and how everything is somehow bound together underground by this sort of neuro complex connecting that giant tree to all of Pandora. Could it be that messy and jacked up Shawn is connected to messy jacked up you in some way? Are we not all just imperfect humans trying to get through each day. We are. I think it might be more important today than ever before to see this reality. To offer what I have heard termed as “Revolutionary Grace” by Tarana Burke. What if we took this thing we call grace and changed the world with it? I mean, we all want grace afforded to us when we make a mistake or doing something wrong so why wouldn’t we extend it out as well?! We could revolutionize the world we see today that is in a constant state of tumult.

I just want you to know, that I will continue to offer this sort of grace because you deserve it and, in the end, I do too. We, my friend, are connected.