"The original, shimmering self gets buried so deep
that most of us end up hardly living out of it at all.
Instead we live out of all the other selves,
which we are constantly putting on and taking off
like coats and hats against the world’s weather"
F. Buechner, Telling Secrets
and now that Spring has officially arrived,
what better time for a clearing out of those
"other selves"
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4 comments:
And yet the "original, shimmering self" is what we were born with, what God gave us, that part of us that has God in it, that part of us that Jesus hinted contains the answer to knowing God and to being known. But our society, our world, the whole network we live in - they all want us to wear clothing in public. And sometimes we wear coats to keep from being frozen or to keep from being soaked. Just because I don't walk down Water St. to the coffee place buck naked does not mean that it's not "I" who am walking. If I come to know my true self, then I can choose to tailor my appearance to meet outside requirements without losing the core of my real self. But when I start to believe that "clothes make the man (or woman," then my self is in trouble.
Thanks, and peace! - Brad
and now that it's spring where you are the unused coats can still be used by others ~ like Mongolian children who are still in the troes of winter until at least May!
my 'self' is also found in those who may provide the answer for us when times tell us we no longer need that particluar veil around us.
everyone becomes a reflection of me, and I of them in this impermanent world. Attachment to our things, our limited understanding of 'who we are', our naming (labelling...these cause suffering for me and you, the universe filled with others
Good to hear from you Brad! Excellent response, but I am also glad that society wants us to wear clothing in public:)
Sally, I like the image of clothes being "veils" and your entire 2nd paragraph.
Is there an organization here that sends coats to Mongolia?
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