Glorious Spectrum

I woke one morning with the thought of an old carpenter’s hands, super calloused, dry, split, but still working, creating, doing in the world. And of a deeply lined, weathered face, that’s all the more intriguing when it smiles. Then I contrasted that with the face of a woman I saw the prior day who had luminous, almost transparent skin, so amazingly pure, I wanted to ask her what skincare product she used! (I’ve used various and expensive ones with no such results, so I noticed her with awe.) What’s the difference between these two examples? Nothing. Nothing but contrast and a spectrum for us to admire, respect and take joy in. 

I’ve said before, we are all here to experience all of life, all extremes, all emotions, all conditions, all possibilities–and to love them all.  Whether the whole spectrum is within you, or whether you are in a narrow part of the spectrum, you are in a vantage point to see the contrast among people or places, to gain insight and ideas, to learn from and respect every other person or place on every other point on the spectrum. 

We are all examples of the infinite nature of God and creation. So, whether you encounter an athlete in peak capability, or someone confined to a wheelchair, or someone amazingly talented or struggling to learn, someone who adheres to your culture or religion or someone who doesn’t, someone of your skin color or a different one, someone who is homeless or a highly paid professional, a health nut or an alcoholic (or chocoholic in my case), a northerner, a southerner, or however you might categorize or see people, revel in the fullness of the spectrum of humanity. Love and respect them for their place on the continuum and the contrast they may provide to you, which helps guide your choices for your life. And for anything that may seem distasteful or “not the path you want to walk”, also have gratitude for them, for they are providing experience, feelings, wisdom and information into the collective consciousness of humanity. We all benefit from the collective knowledge without, perhaps, having to experience everything ourselves.