Everything we do and create in our lives, everything (not just some things) arise from the same source: beliefs. And those beliefs live in us unconsciously and also consciously. We see some of them, but not all of them. Part of the enjoyment of life is finding one, then asking “Do I wanna keep this?” and “Is there another one I prefer now?”
We don’t get a trophy for “getting it right.” In fact, I don’t think there is a “right.” There’s just only the question and the choice. Throughout our lives. And yeah, if you wanna call that “fun,” it’s fun. The more I find ways to like the learning, the more fun I have.
Never mistake the teacher for the teaching. Requiring a teacher to walk their talk perfectly deprives each of us the value of the teaching.
As a teenager, when I was asked if I believed in God, I was stumped. “No,” I said. I understood the word to mean some angry man with a big beard who was full of human characteristics. “No.” The person who asked me paused and asked “What DO you believe in?” I answered “Nature, because I can feel that.” With quiet laughter around me from observers, the questioner smiled slightly, than said “You will when you’re older.” So there I was as a teenager and I thought “What an asshole.”
As an adult I see the missed opportunity. But the encounter stuck with me and taught me how language (words) can be powerful. By insisting that I share their words back then, a wedge of judgment was driven between the questioner and me. And over time it made me want to find the language that’s meaningful to the person I want to connect with. Over time, connection became more important to me than correctness.
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