Well, the first step was accomplished and now it’s time to move on and start the process.
I want to use this time with you to examine how we determine the value of something. Value is such a simple little concept, but it has such a complex definition. Price is usually the first thing that comes to mind when you consider the value, but I find that to be a rather shallow way to define value. The cost of an object can definitely be prohibitive when it comes to acquiring the object, but that does not reflect its value. What is the object worth to you, what benefits do you receive in return for your sacrifice. Every object comes with sacrifice on our behalf. We give up time, energy, thought, emotion, attention, so many things to every object in our lives and each object takes away a little bit more of that from the other objects. The objects in this discussion can be jewelry, money, people, automobiles, pets, literally anything because at the base root of the discussion the point remains the same. How do determine value, and why is it that I can’t help but believe most of humankind is exceedingly unaware of how warped their perception is.
I prefer to look at people for a more clearly defined definition of value. What do you value in another person? Is it trust, compassion, honesty, integrity, loyalty or dependency? It’s different to us all, but we all must define it. You can walk through life blindly ignorant of it, or you can decide to make a conscious decision to try and understand this majestic experience. We all have choices in life, and it is about time you made some. I am talking about choices that shape how you enjoy every day of your life, I take it for granted that you all make simple choices every day…like breathing, eating, and copulating. You can continue to let people use you towards their ends, or you can begin to understand just who you are.
Too often people place value on the material objects in their life. So much time is dedicated to the pursuit of a new car, a new pair of shoes, a better cable package, or a better bank account. I am not trying to cast stones. I understand that most of you start out in this regard quite honestly. You see the suffering of those around you and wish that you could help. You have family troubles that have seen such tragedy from which the Greek would have made plays from. You seek to acquire wealth for the comfort it can bring, the good it can accomplish, as well as the aid it can lend. Somewhere along that way that view drifts and the next thing you know you are left with that bereft and hollow feeling. You are surrounded by a mountain of affluence, but none of it satisfies. You have come into contact with so many people, but none of them know who you are. Value in material objects will never allow you to be happy.
There are so many people who do not even know this is how they see the world, or maybe it is that they do not understand there is a different way to see the world. Perception of reality is reality itself. If you cannot perceive the world differently….than the world will never change for you. I see so many people with this mindset, stuck in the negativity that breeds itself around them like the cloud that follows Eeyore around. There is value in the human connection, the human experience. There is beauty in the way a flower blooms, the way that grass smells when it is freshly cut. There is majesty on a moonlit night with dew on the summer meadows. No matter where you stand along the path of life, there is so much around you to be grateful for. There is so much surrounding us that our minds are forced to shut most of it out because of the neural overload. Your job is to train your mind on what to allow in so that you can retain the most precious of moments. Paint upon the canvas of life with such vigor that the stains you leave behind can be cherished and lauded by those who need comfort in their time in the darkness. Marianne Williamson said: “As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.” I think that is a beautiful way to see the world, I think there is great value in that.
Understand, in order to help mend those wrongs that have happened in your life you must understand how to fix them. Money and wealth can bring all types of temporary salves to help with the healing process, but it does not fulfill you without a true connection to the other human being. That connection we have between friends, family, animals, insects, birds, flower, life and this world…that is amazing, that has value. When you perceive value in material objects…you start to lose your connection to all of these other things, because you are divided between them. You have a choice on how you weave this pattern of life, each thread placed by choices that we make. Pick quality threads, make quality connections, and begin to enrich your spirit. Loyalty is the most valuable trait to me because it is a pact between you and the people on the other end of that connection, a pact that they will treat it the same way. Individually, we can obtain inner peace, but together…we can mend the world.