Ah ha Moment

Yesterday, a simple conversation in passing brought me to an ah ha moment. How many times are we chastened to not judge others? Of course, in a court of law it is a different story as it is up to us as a jury to make a judgment based on the information given to us. But individually in life, I have no right to cast judgment of others, especially when I do not have all of the facts. And that includes if I think I have the facts because I heard it in the news or from this person or that person. Gossip and lies have destroyed more than one life. We are surrounded by gossipers and spreaders of lies. Are we guilty of the same? It certainly gives one pause, to evaluate where we stand in that arena. Am I a perpetrator of lies and innuendos, or do I speak up to encourage the silencing of such destructive garbage? The media tells us what they want us to hear, and believe me, it's frequently not the truth. More often than not, it is a little taste of truth mixed in with a whole bunch of lies. And, we as the public get sucked in to the scandalous stories. Shame on me, shame on us.

I was a fan of Michael Jackson in the early years. And as the years have gone by I have basically forgotten about his music. I had forgotten, "We are the World" and "Heal the World", both songs from Michael Jackson that touched me deeply. All I knew of Michael Jackson was his plastic surgery and his strange change from black to white, and from masculine appearance to a strange, more feminine appearance. And the only things I heard through the media made me believe he had turned into a bizarre weirdo. So, with all of that preparation it wasn't difficult to think that the charges of child molestation might be true. So, I found myself judging him. What I believe now is that Michael Jackson was a tormented soul, who, because of being made fun of and being abused, grew up loathing himself. He changed his appearance over and over to become what he believed was beautiful. To make a long story short; I have no right to judge another human being. I don't know the facts, and I don't know if anything the news media feeds me can be believed. I've looked at photos of Michael and his children, and I don't see in his kids eyes what I have seen in the eyes of children who are sexually abused. I see innocence and beauty there. Shame on me, for jumping on the band wagon to be judge and jury on another being whom I don't even know. I am a firm believer that life goes on after this life is over. It is my hope that Michael Jackson is at peace. If he truly is the kind, loving person I want to believe he is, then peace should be what he gets. If the things that have been spread through the media and court are true, then it won't be. He is in God's hands....as are we all.

Every day I encounter people and experiences to which I react with judgments. I have made a conscious effort all of my life to be very careful and to not voice judgments. I have failed at times. I am, after all, merely a mortal. If all of us could master this mortal flaw...the tendency to judge, I can't even imagine what a change it would make in our society. We truly are created equal in the sight of God. It's when we begin to function in this mortal existence that limitations get slapped on us....by judgmental beings. At the drop of a hat I could become homeless, jobless, completely destitute. Where would I be then? I'm a good person with a college education and skills that make it possible to have a good job making a good living. All of that could change in an instant. Does that make me the scum of the earth, to be avoided, treated poorly and abused? If it does, then we (mankind) have entirely missed the boat. We are here to learn. We are here to make choices. We are here to experience joy. We won't be able to experience joy without experiencing some sorrow....how else would we know joy? We are here to see if we are willing to follow in the footsteps of our Creator.

A year ago, after completing an amazing training, I began to see life in an entirely different light. In fact I saw life itself as an amazing light. I saw the difference it made to someone when I made the effort to start a positive conversation with them when I didn't even know them. I saw frowns turn to smiles because I acknowledged them. We all crave acknowledgment. I saw a world full of zombies going from one place to another without even looking from side to side. I had been one of those zombies. I now wanted to sing and dance and jump up and down for joy. I had a smile on my face that would not go away. Life is amazing. It is an honor to have this moment in time to be here, to be experiencing all of the positive, uplifting gifts that come my way. Do I do this perfectly? No, I have to admit that this is not a constant in my life. Some days are better than others. But, did I mention that I am a mortal being? Well, that would explain my slip ups. I am a Spirit being first and foremost, but in this mortal experience I sometimes lose sight of that. And thus, the learning continues.