In her book Taking the Leap, Pema Chodron encourages us to make friends with ourselves. Sure, this means making friends with the parts that are charming, lively, compassionate, but it also means making friends with your inner asshole. Admit it: you've got one. I do too. And I'm fascinated about how much energy I spend trying to escape that fact. Chodron and her teacher Chogyam Trungpa say our fears, particularly our fears of sitting with our true selves, promote separation. Rather than smiling at what is and engaging with the present moment, we prefer to pull inward, chase distractions, and avoid connections.
It is encouraging then to find someone who is operating at a higher level of spiritual awareness than this humble Flamingo. My friend, Sara, sent me this video of American classical composer and conductor, Eric Whitacre, speaking at a TED Conference (tagline: "ideas worth spreading"). There is so much here. For example, Whitacre followed his dreams by being open to an unexpected path that allowed his talent to flourish as it was meant to; we could talk a lot about that one. And here, he describes how he followed a spark of inspiration to create something that enriches the soul. The resulting project proves that in spite of our deepest fears which nudge us toward separation, "human beings will go to any lengths necessary to find and connect with each other."
Chodron assures us of this tremendous truth: we all have an essential core of goodness. What if we all tapped our inner wellspring of loving-kindness and inspired possibility? We don't have to guess at the outcome: Whitacre and his virtual choir show us.
I tried to embed the video from the TED Conference below, but I'm not sure it linked properly.
If not, try this link, which works for sure. It's 14 minutes long. Watch it anyway. To take Whitacre's phrase, it's an "electronic message in a bottle" to your best self.
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