What Are You Afraid Of?

Ezra Bayda, a buddhist teacher in San Diego, has written a wonderful article about the three things we fear most: the fear of losing safety and control, fear of aloneness and disconnection, and the fear of unworthiness. Click on the title to follow the link.

This article really spoke to me. Bayda writes: "It’s interesting that one of life’s most vital lessons is something we are never taught in school: how to be at home with ourselves." I hope you enjoy his perspective.

Dirty Little Freaks

I've never felt comfortable with the scrubbed-for-Sunday crowd. There's something about them that makes me fidgit. You know who I'm talking about - the Christians that are so sugary sweet that you feel like you're getting cavities just standing next to them. They wear a facade, like their faith is the glaze on a day-old donut that obscures the truth of the staleness underneath.

I tried to fit in. Oh, how I tried. I'd put on my shirt and tie, my suit jacket, and my freshly shaved mug. (Jehovah's Witnesses do not approve of beards on their men. They see it as a symbol of the counter-culture. They won't criticize you to your face but you will be denied higher privileges in the religion because you are viewed as "spiritually immature" and ... ooo, even worse ... possibly rebellious.) The harder I tried to fit in, the more I realized I was totally alien and didn't belong there.

Spirituality is not a one-size-fits-all proposition. I was wrong to expect that other people would squeeze into such a tight space.
I was learning that I couldn't fit myself into that prison, either. I've concluded that it's unreasonable to think that God would feel that way about his own precious creation that was MADE to be different from one another.

There's something about the broken ones, the rougher-tougher crowd, and the not-quite-right that draws my everlasting affection. I feel more at home with them than with anyone else. The ironic thing about this situation is that while I'm not conservative enough for the traditional Christians, I'm not freaky enough for the alternative crowd. Somehow, I always find myself in the middle.

2012: A Time For Change

A few months ago, when I was still in Seattle, I saw a movie by Daniel Pinchbeck called "2012: A Time For Change" which introduced a sliver of hope into my life regarding the evolution of human consciousness and the future of the Earth. This isn't a movie that will be readily accepted by the mainstream masses because he promotes many things that are currently rejected wholesale by our culture. However, if you know where he is coming from, it's a breath of fresh air. I highly recommend seeing this if it comes to your town.

Daniel has his own blog. You can get there by following the link in his name. There is also the website called "Evolver", which may interest you. "Evolver" is more about connecting people that have these similar interests in alternative energy, environmentalism, shamanism, and many, many more subjects. It may sound like a mish-mash but I guarantee that these movements have more in common than even most of their followers may realize.