"Our Humanity : The Unending Quest for Connection With Our Soul"

In the quiet of the early morning hours, he did not want to put on his sirens.

But by the way he rushed onto the highway from his hideaway, you knew he was going to "hit his target."


A few miles down the road...I saw he had succeeded.


I smiled.

There was the car that had raced by, changing lanes just not to slow down his speed.

He'd gotten caught.

My smile was more than at the highway patrolman who had gotten the speeding driver.
It was a smile at our humanity and our need to speed...and our need to win...to catch our target. Even the fact that I found some satisfaction in the speeder getting caught is indicative of our humanity.

That's most of what this journey we're living is now all about: playing by the rules...breaking the rules by speeding...racing through life...catching the speeder...and slowing down.

Isn't it?

There are some of us who play by the rules but somehow still manage to get "caught somewhere" and are forced to slow down.




Think about your life.

Are you playing by the rules: If so, do you feel immunized from life's vicissitudes?

I doubt it.

Once we're in this human body, we're subject to any of the changes life doles out to us at expected or unexpected moments. Yes. No matter how much we play "by the rules."


I'm no lawbreaker; as best I can, I try to respect and uphold the law and do the right thing. Still, there are some rules that I can't help but break, so impossible the standards, or "unreasonable" the situation.

Then, there are those who make no attempt at lawful living.

Those are the people, mostly, that some other people have made full time occupations, by becoming police officers, lawyers, prosecutors, judges and other areas of law enforcement.




These occupations sprung up over the centuries from our desire for lawful,or lawless, living.


All are based on our humanity.

Every occupation...every single thing any of us do... whether we are aware of it or not, springs from our humanity and a need to stay within the laws of "civilized behavior."

Hairdressers...dressmakers...store keeper et al. These all cater to our human "whims" and needs.
We don't think about these things, because they are all a part of our lives.




Yes. Our lives.

Did you miss the part where I said "part of?"By that I mean that these

"things"

so occupy our being that they become our very life!



I know some Saturdays, if I call to any city where I have friends or family, a large number of family/friends are in the beauty salon and/or in the stores, shopping.

It was so remarkable a few Saturdays ago, I called two of my closest female friends, and they were both... at their respective hairdressers.




I smiled.

That's one aspect of my humanity I have conquered.

I do whatever needs to be done to my hair ...by myself.


I'd lived in Chicago for many years, where the best of African-American hairdressers set up business. Years ago, when I was in the pulse of "life's hands," I sat for hours at least one, mostly two, Saturdays a month getting my hair "done."

Freedom.

Now, I've chosen freedom: "Free at LAST!" I giggle happily as I think I've conquered this beast: spending one of two free days sitting in a beautician's chair, waiting my turn.

Free...at last.

I've freed myself in other ways too.

Aside from not going to the hairdressers,
I don't do a lot of things we attribute to the business of "living."

Yes, I participate because I want to be "civilized."





I go shopping...but only when that is a "moment" that I see as a pleasurable activity for the "moment," rather than a "must-do" activity.

I haven't conquered it all...but I'm much farther along in living this life of my humanity than I was...let's say 20 years ago.

I choose the life I want to live. I can do everything at once, or I can do nothing at all...at all...and still feel peace.

I've chosen not let "life" live me. At least I try not to let it.

Our humanity is our essence.

It is the core of our being.

But we've got to be able to see that our humanity is only the vehicle for the unending journey into our soul.

When we do, we are able to distance ourselves from all the busyness of "living."

Yes...we can STOP being busy doing things that really don't matter to the essence of our soul.




I understand why monks can stay in monasteries for days only dwelling in the Silence of their souls.

I understand why nuns are content in their "habitats."

I understand why prisoners locked up can find peace...finally...behind the locked doors of their cells.





Sometimes, we've got to get "locked up" in order to wake up to the reality of our being.

Sometimes, we've got to have a cop or a judge throw the keys at us...and the clang of a cell door closing behind us to wake up to our soul.
We need to wake to the impotence of our humanity.

We need to see that all the speeding...the drugging...the driving too fast...moving too fast...the primping...the vanity...the hostility and hatred to and for each other...are causing a deeper chasm between our humanity and our soul.

Do you want to enjoy this journey...in freedom?

Then slow down...look around...and see the illusion of the world in which we
live.

A fast car...a beautiful, perfect body...a perfect haircut...a trophy wife/husband...




Great stuff for our humanity...but
do they matter...in the end?

In the end... at the very end...

All that would matter is the connection into and with your soul.

Keep it real, folks!

Namaste',
Che'