If I’m to grow beyond wherever I am at this time, I’ll need a firm foundation as a starting point. That foundation is Reality for me however I might define it. It, in turn, will need to identify who I am and also why I am – in short, my life.
To begin, my life is material, at least in part. In this form, it’s totally integrated with all other life of which I’m conscious especially with the world in which I live. I recognize that I do not live on earth but rather in earth. The earth is not just beneath my feet, it’s a part of me – the minerals, water, and air, all being fully integrated in my material form, in my bones, flesh and blood, cellular structures forming my physical body.
My body also houses my mind, and my spiritual awareness particularly, and this how I recognize that I am indeed alive – I’m aware. Nature created my body, but something beyond it created my awareness of my life. Increasing this awareness is my life’s purpose for I sense the innate desire to thrive and to contribute value. This is something I share with every other life form, from viruses, great plants and animals to the earth itself.
Thriving and contributing demands adaptation because the world, of which I’m part, is constantly changing, so I must change with it. The only alternative is to surrender my life – adapt or die! Clearly this change can only happen if I am connected, to nature, to other life forms and to other beings like me. What I share in common greatly exceeds whatever differences / differentiations might appear. I am indeed like water with its recurring cycle of rainfall through multiple forms and roles to eventual evaporation.
Even as a single drop of water I can be mighty, as in a river, lake or flood. I can accept and tolerate whatever impurities I might accrue along the way with the realization that they are never an integral part of me. I can accept my specific and immediate function(s) withn the context of recognizing my higher purpose. I can acknowledge my current situation and even my origins without concern for my eventual disposal.
The crucial point is that I am an integral part of something far greater than my solitary awareness and that I add value to a higher purpose – the fulfillment of the Creator / Sources tendency towards perfection. I can never be single, alone, abandoned or neglected for long, and my contributions, such as they are, will always count for something in the grand scheme of things.
True and enduring value is created at these interfaces I share with every other living entity and particularly with those who are similar to me in form and substance. The lifecycle patterns revealed in nature assure me that I am on track in the completion of my appointed tasks and destined to be successful, often despite myself.
Let me start right here – Integration!
