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Today's
Meditation:
It is true that we pay very close attention to the
immediate problems, those things that cause pain to our
nerves, and not so close attention to those things that
aren't nearly as obvious. Why does it take
alcoholics and drug addicts so long to fight behaviors
that are damaging them terribly? If they had a thorn
in their foot, they'd remove it immediately, but the
addiction, which does far more damage than any thorn ever
could, is left to fester and cause further harm.
I know that part of the reason has to do with the fact
that we're not taught to recognize such problems or the
harm they do. Another part of the problem is that
even if we do recognize them, we have a tendency to
minimize their effects on us, and even deny that they have
any effect at all. "I can quit any time I
want," we say, or "I'll quit cheating on my
taxes next year, when I have more money," or "I
need this more than he does."
What happens when we do hurt our souls? We can see a
cut or a sore, but the damage to our spirits in not to be
seen, only felt. And if we devote ourselves to
constant entertainment-- constant distractions to keep
ourselves from thinking about the condition of our souls--
then we develop plausible deniability about whether
there's even any damage at all. But the damage is
there, whether we admit it or not, and eventually it will
catch up with us and bring us down for a time.
Our souls are very important, but we tend to live as
soulless creatures, simply making our ways through each
day without thinking about how we'll nourish and care for
our spiritual sides. We can damage our souls with
our behaviors, so it's very important that we make sure
that the behaviors are appropriate not just for the people
we are, but also for the people we want to be.
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