Being Best
What To Be, or Not
To Be, When We Grow Up
The Tao Te Ching says. “If you want
to be whole, let yourself be partial. If you want to
be straight, let yourself be crooked. If you want to
be full, let yourself be empty. If you want to be reborn,
let yourself die. If you want to be given everything,
give everything up.” These are not empty phrases;
they are about our willingness to embrace life fully
with humility and humanity. These words are about integrity
and courage.
Today we live in a society that is hell-bent on materialism, plundering the earth
and getting ahead, whatever ahead selfishly looks like. The greatest minds on
the planet wonder whether we have time to turn this potential disaster around.
We are on the brink of destroying ourselves. Perhaps since we created this, we
deserve it but I am not sure that in the grand scheme of things, it matters.
Every 25,000 years or so we have a disaster that is catastrophic and we, life
miraculously begins again from the bowels of each disaster. However, is that
really the issue? When, and if, we hit the wall, what will we each individually
have to say to ourselves about what we did or did not do to contribute to our
destiny and the strength of our character, both individually and as global citizens?
It really is only and all about us.
Some believe, as I do, that we start our next life at the same level of consciousness
in which we left this life. When we begin again, we have to start out learning
the lessons we skipped learning in this life in order to move our soul forward.
This time, this life is a precious gift, a blank canvas on which we write our
own destiny. This is an enormous opportunity to wake up. So how are you doing?
Recently, some of us got curious about our spiritual IQ was and I thought you
might want to do the same. Here’s the little test we took. I created it
from an article in Family Therapy Magazine by Park and Peterson that described
the character traits that brought people true happiness. Feel free to measure
your own. And, when you are finished you may see some areas that deserve your
attention. Take a moment to write in the percentage to which you feel you have
achieved excellence in each category.
Character Strength and Spiritual Rating
1. Wisdom and knowledge:
- Creative thinking, pushing out
the limits, getting out of your comfort zone to try
on new ways of
doing and being
- Curiosity and spiritual exploration into new
areas of thinking and believing
- Open-mindedness, seeing all
sides with acceptance, free from judgment
- Mastering new skills, tools
and spiritual abilities
2. Courage,
emotional strength and right use of will:
- Authenticity
and truthfulness, speaking in genuine ways
- Bravery, willingness to face
and resolve issues and fears
- Persistence and level of commitment
to spiritual values
- Zest, approaching and participating
in life with reverence and joy
3. Humanity, interpersonal strengths of tending
to or be in service to others:
- Kindness or doing good deeds
for those in need
- Love, commitment for self
and others
- Awareness of your own motives,
using ethical boundaries and communication.
4. Justice, co-creating better world and community
both spiritual and in general:
- Fairness, treating all people
equally and justly
- Leadership, taking a lead role
bringing greater awareness to groups, family and
career. Willingness
to pioneer
consciousness.
- Teamwork, making a conscious
effort to empower and support others success
5. Temperance, strengths that
protect against excess:
- Forgiveness, not holding
grudges or old resentments
- Modesty, acting more out of
spirit and alignment than ego
- Preciseness, being careful about
choices of what to do and not to do that empowers
you
and others
6. Transcendence
- Appreciation for life and
all it’s beauty,
excellence and opportunities for growth that you
create
- Gratitude, thankfulness for
all experiences and choices both good and hard
- Hope for the future and determination
to fulfill your purpose
OK, how did you do? The wonderful thing about getting
conscious is that you get to wake up anytime and there
is no judgment about when you decide to do it. The
real issue is THAT YOU DO IT. This moment is a great
time to begin or take it farther. Who knows, together
we may be able to turn this potentially difficult future
around.
Arizona Together
March 2007
Dr. Dina Evan
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