Grape #38: Before I Leave This Earth

This reflection is not written from fear, but rather concern. Whether I leave this lifetime in the coming week or 50 years from now, I will most certainly die, and when I do, there's a very good chance I won't have the time to put down these thoughts before I go. As a writer, I am grateful for all the many words I have already left for my friends, my family, and for humanity as a whole, but with the looming possibilities related to the current coronavirus outbreak, I began to muse about death. Specifically, I began to think about what last words I might have for humanity before I go.

As I thought through what I'd say in a hypothetical final post on social media, I realized I'd probably be brief, and highlight just a few keywords. This quickly led to the realization I was working within an acronym (a strange one, but one which worked), so I went with it. Once I had it, I began this post.

Believe was the first word that came to my mind, but not an empty belief. Quite the opposite. Belief is built up over time with evidential and experiential proof. If you climb a hollow ladder of belief built by rungs of empty truths forced upon you by others, you're destined to laugh them off sooner or later and simply place your feet back on the ground with a smile of disdain. Real belief is self-realized, not taught to you by others. It takes what you've heard, seen, and felt, and it forms its own understandings of what is true and what is not. A believer creates his or her own ladder of principles, quickly realizing that Truth is universally felt by people of all backgrounds around the world, with rungs forged eons ago by fellow travelers along the way.

After I understood belief was the first principal, the word Originate came to mind next. As a lover of words, I have tried my very best to be a creator and not a copier in this world. Though I love sharing the wise words of others as much as I enjoy passing along funny memes and pictures, I urge you to not simply copy and paste your way through life. So often online, I'll begin reading a heartfelt, meaningful message from someone on Facebook, and immediately realize it's simply something they copied and pasted from elsewhere. Great words deserve to be shared a great deal, it's true, and I always hope others will find my words worthy of sharing too, but neither should we neglect to share our own words with the world as well. Photos, paintings, dances, sculptures, and performances are other ways to share yourself with the world, but remember to always share the real you in your own original words as well. Leave your mark on this world, even if your spelling and grammar are less than stellar. Just share what's on your mind in your own words, because when you do, you yourself are a creator.

Beautify arrived next, and it's much simpler than the others, but no less important. Make the world more beautiful, and because making the world more beautiful is a big ask, I urge you to start with your local community. Your house doesn't count! A beautiful home is a wonderful thing, especially if you regularly, generously welcome guests to enjoy it, but the object here is others, not yourself. Find ways to beautiful your street, your neighborhood, and your town. Remember too that beauty does not necessarily mean actual flowers or decorations. Making a place more beautiful is an art form in itself, and I leave the nuances and creative inspirations to each of you.

Care about every sentient being in your midst, even the people you do not like very much. This simple word does not necessitate you befriending someone who drives you nuts. It simply means that you open your soul to loving them enough to care about their well-being. Care enough to not mock them. Care enough to not belittle them. Care enough to worry about their mental health. Care enough to be concerned about everyone, to pause long enough once you hear about a death or disaster in the world to really honor the life or lives lost for more than just a few seconds. Give a bad news story a minute of silence in your mind, for starters, and see how this caring changes you for the better.

Alleviate. Beyond caring about others, an emotion you will live and breathe within you, we are also all called to alleviate the suffering of others whenever we can. This can be as simple as handing money to someone living on the street or it can mean writing checks regularly to agencies helping others in need. When you arrive in Heaven, and are shown the suffering of others, will you feel content you did enough? Will you be glad you helped where you could as much as you could? This isn't a judgment of you or of myself. This is simply a reminder to you and to myself of our need to help those who we are able to help, and not just those in our own circle of people we know.

The last word that came to me parallels the first, but Trust goes beyond mere belief. If Belief reaches upward with dedication to a higher purpose, Trust is the arms stretched outward from your hips, the acceptance that your life is an instrument for the betterment of humanity. Make me an instrument of your peace, Saint Francis prayed, and this willingness to give our lives over to the greater good is the level of selfless acceptance we all must reach sooner rather than later. A dying person who chooses to donate their organs to help a stranger is a simple example of this kind of other-centered existence, but neither should you wait till the last possible second to be so giving. Instead, we are all tasked with remembering our eternal self who is only a visitor on this beautiful little planet for a short period of time. We are called to trust God to use us and our lifetime for the good of others, and we are participants in this divine love when we live an other-centered life with joy.

BOBCAT. I know it's a weird acronym, but it's what I received this morning, and what I have to offer you and myself at the moment. If you've read this reflection, there's a pretty good chance you already care quite a bit about other people (not because you read MY words, but because you chose to read words on this topic).

I pray for myself and I pray for each and every one of you. May we all be powerful instruments for the spirit, willing vessels for goodness and truth, even when our own ships are weighed down by the needs of others. We're in this together, on both sides of the veil, and always will be.